Carlos Alcaraz: World number one withdraws from Spain’s national team in the Davis Cup finals

Carlos Alcaraz said he was “heartbroken” after withdrawing from Spain’s Davis Cup finals squad due to injury.

World number one Alcaraz, 22, who lost to Jannik Sinner in the ATP Finals on Sunday, said he had been advised not to compete due to swelling in his right hamstring.

Spain will meet the Czech Republic in the Davis Cup quarter-finals in Bologna, Italy, on Thursday.

Spaniard Alcaraz, who won the French and US Open titles this year to take his tally in Grand Slam titles to six, wrote on Instagram:, external That playing for his country was “the greatest thing ever”, adding: “I’ll go home sad…”

World number two Sinner – a winner of four Grand Slam titles – and teammate Lorenzo Musetti are both absent from the Italian squad, leaving Germany’s Alexander Zverev, ranked number three in the world, as the only player in the top 10 in the eight-team finals.

The Spanish Tennis Federation said that Alcaraz felt “physical pain” in the back of his thigh during the first set of his 7-6 (7-4), 7-5 final loss in Turin to the 24-year-old Sinner.

Alcaraz traveled to Spain’s training camp on Monday, but medical tests revealed “significant muscle tension with noticeable edema” in his hamstrings.

He was ranked No. 1 in the world at the end of the year last week after reaching the knockout stages of the ATP Finals with three straight victories.