Things seem to have gone from bad to worse for Carlos Alcaraz. Fresh off his US Open triumph and return to the World No. 1 spot, the Spaniard’s Japan Open debut has quickly turned into a worrying affair. In his opener against Sebastian Baez in Tokyo, Alcaraz endured rain delays, tricky conditions, and most concerning of all, a nasty fall at 2-2 in the first set. Though with his trademark grit to push through, and necessary on-court treatment, he was able to complete the match. However, it may have come at a heavy cost, with his Japan Open campaign now hanging in the balance.

Unfortunately, even 24 hours later, after having secured his spot in the round of 16 of the tournament, Carlos Alcaraz is still feeling pain in his affected area. Guess the compression bandage that he applied during the game was nothing but just a temporary solution to his problem, as the 22-year-old did look in discomfort the whole time.

And even right now, he might be, as a surprising report from Marca states that Alcaraz has decided to rest from training on Friday. This call is to ensure he doesn’t end up putting enough strain on his injured ankle ahead of his next clash against Zizou Bergs, with the match scheduled for the final session on Saturday night in Tokyo alongside seven other contests. He will decide tomorrow whether he steps on the court vs. Bergs or not.

Sure, the good thing is that he isn’t alone in the healing process, as the latter continues to work closely with his physiotherapist, Juanjo Moreno. Rest assured, the only thing that remains a possibility is to see him taking a rest from any kind of training, meaning one shall directly see him in the match. That, too, however, will also depend on how he can manage his pain if it doesn’t go away in time.

Not to mention, after the game, the player himself admitted to being frightened by his fall. “I was scared, I’m not going to lie. When I planted the ankle, I was worried, because it didn’t feel good at the beginning,” he revealed in the post-game presser. Well, it came after he was trying to reach for a wide forehand, but ended up losing his footing on the baseline, immediately grabbing his left ankle and heel in pain.

Lying on the surface, grimacing, a reassuring look at the box saw the physio rush hurried over, resorting the Spanish tennis star with heavy taping. Though with caution, Alcaraz resumed, it betrayed his discomfort and even saw him lacking in the usual sharpness he often showcased. Then again, flashes of brilliance kept him in control.

Serving at 5-4, just as he appeared to settle into rhythm, the rain interrupted again, forcing a 30-minute pause. Once play resumed, Alcaraz regrouped with renewed focus, tightening his grip on the match to close out a hard-fought 6-4, 6-2 victory—a triumph that carried extra weight given the circumstances and something he didn’t let go unnoticed.

“I’m just happy that I was able to play after that, play such a good tennis finish the match quite good so, but lets see it’s not gonna be the next day for me, so I will try to recover and do whatever it takes, you know, to be ready for the next round to try to play and I have a good level enough to compete in the next round, but it was a bad…it was lucky, I’d say so let’s see.”

While he was assured of seeing this, what Carlos Alcaraz likely didn’t see coming was that this unfortunate and concerning injury update could cost him a crucial opportunity.

Will Carlos Alcaraz end the year as the World No. 1?

No one is as aware of the stakes as Carlos Alcaraz is, who earlier described the top spot in the rankings as a big goal: “Obviously, being No. 1 is a goal every time I’m [behind] and the race is an important ranking for me.” Though Alcaraz heads into the Asian Swing with a slender 760 point lead over his closest rival and World No. 2, Jannik Sinner, a medium to long term injury could see the Italian surge right up the rankings again.

For the record, up next on the calendar is the Shanghai Masters 1000 (October 1–12). Everyone knows how crucial this event is, considering this event offers valuable points in his battle with Jannik Sinner for the year-end No. 1 spot. Even though Sinner has more points to defend, being the reigning champion, an injury to Alcaraz would render that fact moot.

Beyond that, Alcaraz is also slated to feature at the Six Kings exhibition tournament in Riyadh, the Paris Masters in Bercy, the ATP Finals in Turin, and finally the Davis Cup Final 8 in Bologna. To remain the year-end No.1, the Spaniard cannot afford to take his foot off the gas. After all, as Jannik Sinner said at the China Open, ‘The season’s not over yet. We still have here. We have Shanghai, very big. We have Paris, which is very big. Turin, Davis Cup. Still big tournaments to come. Obviously the biggest, they are gone, with the Grand Slams, and we split those.”

Either way, let’s hope for a positive outcome and, more importantly, everyone awaits his decision on whether he’ll be stepping on the court tomorrow or not.