Carlos Alcaraz has shared his immediate thoughts on the injury that nearly ruled him out of the Japan Open.
Alcaraz suffered a fall and appeared to injure his ankle in the fifth game of his first set against Sebastian Baez at the Japan Open.
There was genuine fear about whether the Spaniard would be able to continue, but Alcaraz won the match in straight sets afterwards in straightforward fashion.
The star has revealed an immediate update on the injury in his post-match interview in Tokyo.
Carlos Alcaraz said he was ‘scared’ of Japan Open injury
Alcaraz spoke on-court after confirming his place in the second round of the Japan Open and spoke about his injury
“I was scared. I’m not gonna lie,” said Alcaraz about the fall that nearly derailed his entire tournament. “I felt my ankle and didn’t feel great,” he continued.
“I’m just happy to be able to play after that,” the World No. 1 added before hinting about his future in the tournament.
“I will try to be ready for the next match,” he explained. “It was unlucky. In the first five minutes I thought I wouldn’t continue”.
The Spaniard will play either Zizou Bergs or Alejandro Tabilo in the second round of the Japan Open if he is fit to do so.
Carlos Alcaraz’s stats against Sebastian Baez
Despite the injury in the early going of his first-round match, the Spaniard did not appear to suffer too much on the court in the aftermath.
Alcaraz dealt with Argentine opponent with relative ease, dropping just six games in two sets against the star.
Per Sofascore, the Spaniard hit an impressive 77% of his first serves, which lead to Alcaraz accumulating 72% of points on his first serve.
The star also won 10 more points than Baez, earning 60 points as he rushed to yet another first round win.
