Carlos Alcaraz was already in the final by the time he dropped a set last year in the U.S. Open.

When it happened in his second match this year, Alcaraz tried to look at the positives. After missing four months with a right wrist injury, the extra work might help.

“I wanted to be quick, to be honest. I’m not going to lie,” Alcaraz said. “But at the end, I realized that just playing four sets, it was really good for me to test everything physically, to test my body, how I feel, and tomorrow how I’m going to feel after this match.” The defending champion rebounded from a quick deficit by winning eight straight games and beat Jaime Faria 4-6, 6-0, 6-3, 6-2 on Wednesday (September 2, 2026) night.

The No. 2-seeded Alcaraz dropped his serve midway through the first set but soon was back to playing long stretches of flawless tennis.

“After that I just tried to be focused, tried to stay calm and I’m thinking that good things are going to happen again,” Alcaraz said.

He didn’t drop a set last year until the final against Jannik Sinner, becoming the first man since Roger Federer in 2015 to go through his first six matches without doing so. He then beat Sinner in four sets for his second U.S. Open title.

The 23-year-old Alcaraz then picked up his seventh major title at this year’s Australian Open and is on a 16-match winning streak in Grand Slam tournaments.

But after missing the French Open and Wimbledon during his absence, even Alcaraz said he didn’t know what to expect in Flushing Meadows, where he won his first major title in 2022 at 19.

Daniil Medvedev, the U.S. Open champion the year before that, said a player of Alcaraz’s caliber is always a top contender any time he is in the field.

“We have no idea how Carlos’ wrist is going to feel, body is going to feel going later into the tournament, but he’s definitely a top favorite for the title,” Medvedev said.

Faria, three months younger than Alcaraz, broke for a 4-3 lead in the first set and used a powerful serve to stay ahead. Alcaraz felt after getting broken that he was rushing too much.

“After that I just wanted to play short points, which was a mistake for me,” he said. “I just needed to play patient, to play long rallies, three, four, five shots, and then go for it.” Alcaraz stressed again that he is no longer in pain and has been hitting his forehand without any restrictions in practice.

“I know once I step on the court, I’ve just got to go for it every time. I’ve got to feel normal,” Alcaraz said. “I have to hit like I was hitting before the injury, and let’s see what happens after that.

“I’m just feeling great,” he added. “There is no reason to be afraid and not hitting normal.”

Tennis fans of recent vintage never tire of talking about the ‘Big Three’ of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic.

It’s understandable too, for they collectively won 66 Majors in a 20-year-span, triggered constant improvements in each other’s games and elevated the quality to levels unseen.

When Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner started dominating the Tour — they have won 11 of the last 13 Slams — supporters were no doubt enthralled, but there was a longing for a third power-centre to break the duo’s omnipresence.

Sunday’s final at Wimbledon, where Jannik Sinner brought down the German wall in Alexander Zverev 6-7(7), 7-6(2), 6-3, 6-4, may be the first sign of such a triumvirate developing in this era.

“Big, big respect to Sascha [Zverev], because he’s doing something amazing,” Sinner said after winning his second straight Wimbledon and fifth Major.

“His game is growing, and what’s good is that you have someone who is pushing you to the limit. We hope that Carlos [Alcaraz] comes back [from his wrist injury], because tennis needs him. Having Novak [Djokovic] around, and with all the young players coming up, it’s really nice.”

Zverev, 29, did not play like a man who had lost nine straight times to Sinner. The French Open win last month had done wonders to his confidence, and he came out all guns blazing, hitting monstrous serves and big ground-strokes to stay with the World No. 1 for the first two sets.

“We’ve had glimpses of him trying to play that way in previous head-to-head matchups,” Sinner’s coach Darren Cahill said.

“In Miami [where Sinner won 6-3, 7-6(4)], he served really well and was unloading on every single forehand. He had a couple of chances in that match. We knew he was capable of doing it. We just didn’t know for how long he could.” Though Zverev’s level dropped slightly in the third and fourth, he ran up a break-point at 3-3 in the third — saved by a brave Sinner drop shot — and severely tested the Italian when the latter was serving for the championship at 5-4 in the fourth.

At 30-30, it required Sinner to come up with a remarkable backhand cross-court lift, almost parallel to the net, to turn an excruciating rally his way.

“This year has been a progress,” stated Zverev, who is now the new World No. 2. “I haven’t beaten, but I’ve pushed them to the limits. Alcaraz in Australia, Jannik may be here. Even though it was four sets, it was very close, and could have gone five as well.

“I’ve always been the third guy in a way. So if I get closer to them, be in the mix to win the big tournaments, it would be great”.

Two-time Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz on Tuesday (May 19, 2026) said he is pulling out of the grass-court Grand Slam event next month because of his lingering wrist injury.

Alcaraz injured his right wrist at the Barcelona Open last month and had already withdrawn from the French Open that starts this weekend. He won the clay-court tournament the last two years.

“My recovery is going well and I’m feeling much better,” Alcaraz posted on his social media accounts, “but unfortunately, I’m still not ready to compete.”

Alcaraz started the year by winning the Australian Open to become the youngest man ever to win all four major titles in tennis.

Alcaraz won back-to-back Wimbledon titles in 2023 and ’24, beating Novak Djokovic in both finals. He lost in the final last year to Jannik Sinner in another chapter of what shapes to be a generational rivalry.

“They are two truly special tournaments for me and I will miss them a lot,” Alcaraz said of missing Wimbledon and the warmup event at Queen’s Club in London.

“We’ll keep working to come back as soon as possible!”

IT services company Infosys on Wednesday (April 15, 2026) announced it has signed up seven-time Grand Slam Champion Carlos Alcaraz as its global brand ambassador.

Further, Infosys — leveraging Infosys Topaz, an AI-first offering powered by generative and agentic AI technologies — will now work with Alcaraz and his coaching team to develop an AI-powered match analytics and a personalised performance application to aid match preparation and in-game strategy.

Beyond the court, the partnership also extends to joint initiatives between Infosys and the Carlos Alcaraz Foundation, to leverage technology to drive social impact, focusing on tech-for-good initiatives.

Overall, Infosys said, the collaboration is a convergence of excellence – the relentlessness and grit of a champion combined with the consistency and AI-powered innovation of an enterprise technology leader – celebrating the champion mindset across tennis and global businesses.

“Infosys…today announced a multi-year partnership with the youngest athlete ever to achieve the world number one ranking in men’s tennis Carlos Alcaraz, welcoming him as its Global Brand Ambassador,” the company said in a release.

Carlos Alcaraz is a champion athlete, recognised not only for his seven Grand Slam titles but also for being the youngest man in history to complete a career Grand Slam.

He is a sportsperson recognised for his relentless drive, pursuit of excellence, consistency, and integrity.

“These are the values that guide Infosys – responsible leadership and excellence in innovation to amplify human potential and power global enterprises,” the release said.

Partnering with Alcaraz marks the next chapter in Infosys’ mission to elevate tennis through AI and extend its impact across the sport’s global community.

“I’m always looking for new ways to improve, and working with Infosys will give me the opportunity to leverage data and AI to gain deeper insights into my game and push my performance to new heights. Beyond the court, I’m also excited to collaborate with Infosys through my foundation, leveraging technology to make a meaningful impact in communities around the world,” Alcaraz said.

Sumit Virmani, Global Chief Marketing Officer of Infosys, noted that Alcaraz embodies the spirit of a new generation that is fearless, agile, and driven to push boundaries in pursuit of excellence.

“At Infosys, we share this passion for innovation and progress, using technology to amplify human potential, and helping our clients achieve extraordinary outcomes. Together with Carlos, we look forward to redefining performance in tennis and inspiring progress both on and off the court,” Mr. Virmani added.

Daniil Medvedev handed top-seeded Carlos Alcaraz his first loss of the year and advanced to the final at Indian Wells with a 6-3, 7-6 (3) victory Saturday.

The 11th-seeded Medvedev, from Russia, will face second-seeded Jannik Sinner of Italy. Sinner beat Alexander Zverev 6-2, 6-4.

Alcaraz had won 16 straight matches this year, including titles at the Australian Open and Qatar Open. But Medvedev ended the possibility of an Alcaraz vs. Sinner final. Medvedev had dropped his last four meetings against Alcaraz, including a loss in the Indian Wells final in 2024. This was Medvedev’s first victory over him since the U.S. Open semifinals in 2023.

Sinner made quick work of Zverev, beating him in 1 hour, 23 minutes. Sinner notched six aces against the fourth-seeded Zverev.

Zverev won his first eight points on serve. But Sinner broke Zverev in both the fifth and seventh games to secure the first set. Sinner now leads the head-to-head series against Zverev 7-4.

Neither Medvedev nor Sinner has dropped a set yet in this tournament. Sinner has won his last three matches against Medvedev, including in the U.S. Open quarterfinals in 2024.

In the women’s doubles final, Taylor Townsend and Katerina Siniakova beat Anna Danilina and Aleksandra Krunic 7-6 (4), 6-4. The victory marked Townsend’s first at Indian Wells and Siniakova’s second. Siniakova also won in 2023 alongside longtime partner Barbora Krejcikova.

In the men’s doubles final, Guido Andreozzi and Manuel Guinard topped Arthur Rinderknech and Valentin Vacherot 7-6 (3), 6-3. In mixed doubles, Belinda Bencic and Flavio Cobolli beat top-seeded Gabriela Dabrowski and Lloyd Glasspool 6-3 2-6, 10-7.

World number one Carlos Alcaraz swept past Grigor Dimitrov 6-2, 6-4 to reach the third round of the Indian Wells ATP Masters on Saturday (March 7, 2026) as Novak Djokovic battled back for a three-set victory over Kamil Majchrzak.

Spain’s Alcaraz was untroubled by the former world number three from Bulgaria, pushing his perfect 2026 match record to 13-0 in just 66 minutes.

Djokovic, a five-time Indian Wells champion who has struggled in recent years, had to grind for two hours and 12 minutes to subdue 57th ranked Kamil Majchrzak of Poland 4-6, 6-1, 6-2.

Alcaraz said he was wary of Dimitrov, but even in the swirling winds on Stadium Court he was in control, firing from the baseline with power and accuracy.

He barely broke a sweat and cracked plenty of smiles, saving the lone break point he faced in the second set and even getting a high-five from his opponent on a changeover.

“In general just really happy with the things that I’ve done today,” said the 22-year-old Spaniard, whose Australian Open triumph made him the youngest man to complete a career Grand Slam.

He added the Qatar Open title before heading Stateside to chase a third Indian Wells crown.

“I love being here so much, I think that’s why I’m just playing relaxed, playing calm, chilling,” he said.

Although he shares the record for most Indian Wells ATP titles with Swiss great Roger Federer, Djokovic has found the early going in California anything but relaxing in recent years.

That was true again on Saturday, but the 38-year-old Serb superstar — back on court for the first time since he fell to Alcaraz in the Australian Open final — managed to escape with a win.

Majchrzak grabbed two quick breaks in the opening set before Djokovic began to find his rhythm from the baseline and assert his superiority.

“Kamil is a very solid player,” Djokovic said. “He doesn’t have tremendous power, but he has every shot in the book and he was not afraid to come in and take the ball early.

“He played a tremendous first set. I kind of reset and started feeling the ball better,” Djokovic added after a match marked by extended, entertaining rallies that included a 40-shot exchange in the opening game of the third.

Majchrzak held in that game, but Djokovic broke him twice on the way to a 5-2 lead and was finally looking more relaxed when he closed it out with a backhand volley winner.

It was an especially satisfying win for Djokovic, who lost is opener last year to Dutch lucky loser Botic van de Zandshculp and fell to lucky loser Luca Nardi in the third round in 2024.

“It’s kind of hard to find my A-game, particularly at the beginning of the tournament,” he said. “So just glad to overcome a challenge.”

Draper rallies

Britain’s Jack Draper launched his title defense with a 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 victory over Spain’s Roberto Bautista Agut.

Draper halted Alcaraz’s bid for a rare Indian Wells three-peat in the semi-finals last year before beating Holger Rune in the final.

That victory launched his rise to fourth in the world, but he returned to California in rebuilding mode again after an arm injury forced him to cut short his 2025 season.

“To come out and play the level I’m playing after the injury I had, I am really proud of that,” said Draper, who made his return to the tour in Dubai last week having not played since his second-round withdrawal at the US Open.

In other matches, unseeded Brazilian Joao Fonseca saved two match points to take out 16th-seeded Russian Karen Khachanov 4-6, 7-6 (9/7), 6-4.

Seventh-seeded former champion Taylor Fritz and 11th-seeded Russian Daniil Medvedev were in action in the night session.

World number one Carlos Alcaraz cruised past ​Frenchman Arthur Fils 6-2 6-1 ‌to win the Qatar Open ​on Saturday (February 21, 2026) and ⁠extend his perfect start to the year.

Alcaraz, whose second trophy of ‌2026 came 20 days after he completed the ‌career Grand Slam at ‌the ⁠Australian Open, dictated the ⁠match from the outset and won a remarkable 89% of his first-serve ​points while ‌never facing a break point during the 50-minute encounter.

“I came this year hungry for ‌more,” said the Spanish top ​seed, who lost in the Doha quarter-finals ⁠last year.

“I think after every tournament, we just have to ‌set new goals. I’m just really happy and proud of everything I have done with my team on and off the court.”

With ‌the win, Alcaraz improved to 12-0 ​for the year and collected his ninth ATP ⁠500 trophy, which drew him level ⁠with Andy Murray for fourth in the category ‌since its inception, according to the ATP.