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Carlos Alcaraz quit his first-round match against Thiago Monteiro at the Rio Open 2024 due to a horrible ankle injury. The Spaniard rolled his ankle in only the second point of the match while returning a forehand from the Brazilian
Alcaraz then went through a medical inspection and resumed competing. He surprisingly broke Monteiro in the opening set but looked unsettled nonetheless. The discomfort grew as he immediately lost the next game on his serve.
Eventually, he decided to draw the curtains and conveyed the same to the chair umpire as soon as the second game concluded. He shook hands with Monteiro and limped out of the court amid loud cheers.
Alcaraz's withdrawal meant that his quest for a title continued further, since winning Wimbledon in July 2023. The Spaniard's unfortunate exit from Rio has notably upset tennis fans on X (formerly Twitter).
A fan lamented the testing times for the 20-year-old, writing:
"The universe has been testing Carlos Alcaraz hard for a good six months now and that will only make his Roland-Garros title sweeter."
Another fan chimed in, saying:
"When it rains it f**king pours for Carlos. Gotta feel for him."
A third fan claimed that the Spaniard has been unnerved by his kit sponsor Nike's PR strategy as the manufacturing giant had declared "The Alcaraz Era is upon us" following his triumph at London Major last year.
"Nike really spooked him by declaring it's his era LOL," the fan wrote.
Here are a few more reactions from X:
Carlos Alcaraz's Rio Open exit means he remains trophyless in 10th consecutive tournament since Wimbledon 2023
Carlos Alcaraz has been unable to lay hands on a singles title on the ATP Tour since lifting the Wimbledon trophy at All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club on July 16, 2023. He has competed at ten different tournaments, including the Rio Open, since then.
Alcaraz traveled to Ontario, Toronto, to start his North American hardcourt campaign at the Canadian Open. He survived in Toronto until losing to Tommy Paul in the quarterfinals.
He then played at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Cincinnati and finished second-best to Novak Djokovic. After that, he failed to defend his US Open title in New York as he lost to Daniil Medvedev in the semifinal.
Later in October, Carlos Alcaraz suffered semifinal and pre-quarterfinal defeats at the China Open and Shanghai Masters, respectively. Furthermore, he failed to win the titles at the Paris Masters and ATP Finals in November.
The year changed but not Alcaraz's fortunes, as he lost in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open and the semifinals of the Argentina Open in 2024.
