Injured Alcaraz in race against time to be fit for ATP Finals after Paris withdrawal

World No 1 Carlos Alcaraz faces a race against time to be 100 percent fit for the season-ending ATP Finals in Turin after his Paris Masters title hopes ended in pain on Friday when he quit late in the second set of his clash with Holger Rune.

The Spaniard was trailing the in-form Dane 6-3, 6-6, and 3-1 in the second-set tiebreak when he decided to quit because of injury.

“Yes, there is something wrong on the abdominal,” Alcaraz told reporters in Paris. “At the end of the set, it was wrong. It was getting wrong, and yeah, I preferred to retire and see it, and take care about it.

The 19-year-old had seen the trainer a game before and had some cream rubbed into the left side of his abdominal muscle. After Rune held for 6-6, the pair played four points of the tiebreak but Alcaraz was in clear discomfort and decided not to risk further injury.

But with the ATP Finals beginning in Turin on November 13, there is not much time for the US Open champion to regain full fitness.

“Right now I have some test on how it’s gonna be before Turin, but right now I’m focused to try to get better in the abdominal and trying to be at the 100 percent in Turin,” Alcaraz said.

The Spaniard said the injury was affecting most parts of his game during the match with Rune.

“I cannot stretch,” he said. “I mean, I couldn’t serve well. I couldn’t hit the forehand well. When I turn the body, I feel it. So I feel the abdominal in so many movements. Yeah, I was thinking about it. And, yeah, playing like that with some problems and some things in my mind, it’s better to retire.”

Injury may be in same area as previous problem

Alcaraz revealed that the injury is similar to an abdominal problem he has had in the past.

“I think it’s the first time, but is in a zone that I have (had) problems before,” he said. “As I said, I’m gonna do some tests in the abdominal and let’s see if it’s the same problem as I felt before or no.”

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