By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Saturday April 15, 2023
Carlos Alcaraz pulled out of Monte-Carlo with injury issues (post-traumatic arthritis in left hand and muscular discomfort in the spine to be specific), but the 19-year-old World No.2 will be back in action next week in Barcelona, where he is the top seed.
Meanwhile in Barcelona ☀️
A very happy @carlosalcaraz is back on the clay! pic.twitter.com/zAGbpUd3U0
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) April 15, 2023
Alcaraz is back to defend his title at the legendary Real Club de Tenis Barcelona, and he will be put to the task early and often in a stacked draw.
Here is the Spaniard’s projected path to a successful title defense:
R1 – Bye
R2 – Ivashka or Borges
Round of 16 – [13] Bautista Agut
QF – [5] Tiafoe or [10] Davidovich Fokina
SF – [3] Ruud or [6] Khachanov
F – [2] Tsitsipas or [4] Sinner
The Spaniard will be the favorite to get it done on paper, but he’ll have to be healthy to navigate his way through the draw.
He is 18-2 on the season with titles at Buenos Aires and Indian Wells. Last year at Barcelona he took out Pablo Carreno Busta in the final, after defeating Tsitsipas in a three-set quarterfinal and Alex de Minauar in a three-set semifinal.
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