What injury did Carlos Alcaraz suffer against Djokovic? How long is he out for?

Carlos Alcaraz suffered an injury against Novak Djokovic in the French Open semi-final which caused him to leave the court to receive treatment; the Serb took advantage of his discomfort to win the tie with relative ease and make it to the final.

The crowd were unhappy at the stoppages through injury which led to the World number 1 conceding a game as the physio determined that it was due to cramp (medical timeouts cannot be awarded for cramp). Alcaraz suffered the cramping meaning that he had to concede his service game, causing a change of ends and, consequently, a 60-second treatment.

Alcaraz forces the game to stop

Many pundits and commentators claimed that Djokovic’s superior performance in the semi-final caused Alcaraz to suffer the cramping injury, with the Serb battling hard to take an early lead in a game that many were calling a modern classic.

The 16-year age gap between the two players was hard to see as Alcaraz could hardly move as the presumed cramp set in and Djokovic kept up the lightning pace. The Spaniards in the crowd aimed to support their compatriot as he returned to the court but the frustration was palpable in the stands from other after the various stoppages beforehand in the game.

What injury does Alcaraz have?

Nobody is quite sure if the injury that Alcaraz has suffered is simply cramp or if it is something more concerning. It’s fair to say that Djokovic was giving him the runaround which might not have happened otherwise and that the situation of the match was not helping the Spaniard.

As declared by the physio on-site, he looked to be suffering from cramp, but the full extent of the injury - if anything - will likely not be known until the aftermath of the event. But given the grimace on the player’s face as he held his right leg... let’s hope it was indeed just that.