He played with a severe sprain": Alcaraz's co-coach discusses the world No.1's injury in Tokyo

In Open Court, Samuel Lopez revealed the details behind Carlos Alcaraz's injury in Tokyo. The world No.1 gritted his teeth through the pain before choosing caution and withdrawing from the Shanghai Masters 1000.

Having produced the best season of his young career, Carlos Alcaraz prioritized rest following his Tokyo title. Despite suffering an ankle injury early in the tournament, the world No.1 held on but decided not to travel to Shanghai.

This choice was explained by his co-coach Samuel Lopez, who discussed the ankle sprain in detail on the Open Court podcast:

"We thought he was going to withdraw after his ankle injury. He managed to get through that match (against Baez). He had a day of rest the next day. After a discussion with the physio and Juan Carlos and him, we decided he could continue.

But it depended on him, whether he could handle the pain. We managed to control the situation with anti-inflammatories. He was able to hold up despite a grade 2 sprain by following intensive daily treatment.

Of course, he couldn't go to Shanghai. We were taking significant risks, not because of the sprain, which was rather under control, but because unconsciously, you modify weight distribution, which can impact the knee.