Carlos Alcaraz survived a scare on Sunday evening at the Cincinnati Open.
The French Open champion struggled throughout his second-round contest against Bosnia’s Damir Dzumhur, eventually winning the match 6-1 2-6 6-3.
The Spaniard has struggled at the Cincinnati Open since reaching the final in 2023, losing to Gael Monfils in last year’s competition.
Alcaraz, who is hoping to end the year as world number one, will be aiming to end his year on a high after losing the Wimbledon final to his great rival, Jannik Sinner.
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Lindsay Davenport, another former Wimbledon champion, has weighed in on a recent decision made by Carlos Alcaraz and his peers after watching Aryna Sabalenka’s opening round victory at the Cincinnati Open.
Lindsay Davenport says players shouldn’t be pushed to play an ‘unhealthy’ amount of tennis
Lindsay Davenport, the 1999 Wimbledon Ladies Singles champion, was speaking on the Tennis Channel Live Podcast about Aryna Sabalenka’s ‘clutch’ performance in her opening match at the Cincinnati Open, noting how difficult it is to ‘buckle down on the big points’ after having a month off.
Sabalenka, who defeated Marketa Vondrousova 7-5 6-1, had not competed on the WTA Tour since her Wimbledon semi-final loss to Amanda Anisimova.
Davenport’s co-host asked: “What does that say [Sabalenka’s performance] about these top players taking a little bit of time off and missing a big event?”
Davenport replied: “I’m a big proponent of… if you are at the very top and whether you’re Sinner or Alcaraz or Gauff or Sabalenka, Swiatek, you’re playing to win Grand Slams and you kind of adjust your schedule around that.
“And sometimes when you go back to back between Roland Garros and Wimbledon, it is exhausting. You feel empty.
“I just don’t feel like you got to push these players to play an unhealthy amount throughout the season and I support them when they need to take some time.”
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Alcaraz, along with his main rivals, all withdrew from the Canadian Open in July. These developments sparked an ongoing conversation regarding ATP and WTA Tour scheduling after the decision to expand the Canadian and Cincinnati tournaments to 15-day events.
What did Carlos Alcaraz say after withdrawing from the Canadian Open?
Carlos Alcaraz, along with Jannik Sinner, Novak Djokovic and Jack Draper, withdrew from the Canadian Open in July.
On X [Twitter], Alcaraz explained his decision, saying: “After many consecutive weeks of competition without rest, I will not be able to play in Toronto this year.
After many consecutive weeks of competition without rest, I will not be able to play in Toronto this year. I have small muscles issues and I need to recover physically and mentally for what comes next. To the tournament and to my fans in Canada I am very sorry, I will see you…
— Carlos Alcaraz (@carlosalcaraz) July 21, 2025
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“I have small muscles issues and I need to recover physically and mentally for what comes next.
“To the tournament and to my fans in Canada I am very sorry, I will see you next year!“