Carlos Alcaraz is looking ahead to a potential return to the ATP Tour in the near future.
Alcaraz missed both Roland Garros and Wimbledon this year due to a right wrist injury he suffered during the clay court season.
The Spaniard is now planning to make a comeback before the US Open, with Alcaraz on the Cincinnati Open entry list.
Alcaraz was still sporting a small strapping on his wrist when spotted during the football World Cup final, and now Serena Williams’ coach, Rennae Stubbs, has revealed what she has been hearing about the seven-time Grand Slam champion’s comeback.
Rennae Stubbs claims Carlos Alcaraz is planning to play in Cincinnati
Stubbs discussed Alcaraz’s potential comeback in the latest episode of her ‘Rennae Stubbs Tennis Podcast‘.
Although he has entered the Cincinnati Open, there have still been doubts over whether Alcaraz will be fit in time.
However, Stubbs has confirmed that she has heard positive things about Alcaraz’s chances of competing in Cincinnati ahead of the US Open.
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“He is in the United States and the word on the street is that he is going to try and play in Cincinnati,” said Stubbs.
“If that is the case, I can’t imagine that he would have gone back to Spain [after the World Cup]. I would imagine that he would centre himself on a hard court somewhere and practice before Cincinnati. It will be a great relief to tennis fans across the world to see him back and playing.”
Stubbs added, “His fitness will be good, because you can do anything you want with a wrist injury to a certain degree.
“He is not going to be lifting anything above his head but certainly his legs will have been worked hard, so physically he should be okay.
“Getting back on the tennis court and hitting tennis balls is really the predominant thing that he needs to do, hopefully that happens.”
How many ranking points does Carlos Alcaraz have to defend during the US Open swing?
As a result of his absence from the ATP Tour, Alcaraz has dropped down the rankings to world number three, with Alexander Zverev overtaking him after reaching the Wimbledon final.
Alcaraz now faces the pressure of defending a significant number of points during the US Open swing after enjoying a lot of success during this part of the season in 2025.
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Last year, Alcaraz won the Cincinnati Open and the US Open, therefore giving him 3,000 points to defend during the North American hard court swing.
If Alcaraz is unable to return to competition during this time, then he risks dropping even further down the rankings, having not been outside the top three since 2022.
There are just weeks before Alcaraz’s scheduled return, with the Cincinnati Open getting underway on August 13.
