Carlos Alcaraz withdraws from Italian Open, cites arm pain
May 3 (UPI) -- Carlos Alcaraz, the No. 3 men's tennis player in the world, withdrew from the 2024 Italian Open because of arm pain, he announced Friday on social media.
"Felt pain after playing Madrid, pain in my arm," Alcaraz wrote on Instagram, X and Facebook. "Had some tests done today and I have a round pronator muscle edema from my last injury.
"Unfortunately, I won't be able to play in Rome. I need rest to recover and be able to play 100% pain-free. I am very sorry. I will see you next year."
Main-draw play for the 2024 Italian Open will be held from Wednesday through May 19 on the Foro Italico tennis complex campus in Rome.
Russian Daniil Medvedev is the defending men's singles champion. Either Serbian Novak Djokovic or Spaniard Rafael Nadal won the title in 14 of the previous 16 editions of the clay-court tournament.
Kazakhstan's Elena Rybakina won the 2023 women's singles title.
Alcaraz, who won his second Grand Slam at Wimbledon 2023 last summer, lost to No. 8 Andrey Rublev of Russia in the 2024 Madrid Open quarterfinals Wednesday in Madrid.
He reached the quarterfinals in his previous tournament, the 2024 Miami Open, before losing to No. 10 Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria.
He won his second-consecutive BNP Paribas Open title two weeks before his run in Miami Gardens, Fla. Alcaraz also withdrew from last month's Monte Carlo Masters because of his arm issues.
His absences from the clay-court tournaments could impact his preparation for the 2024 French Open. Main-draw play for the second Grand Slam of the season will be held from May 26 to June 9 at Roland Garros in Paris.
Alcaraz previously said he also plans to patriciate in the tennis tournament at the 2024 Summer Games in the French capital.
