Alcaraz Opens Up on Burnout: 'I Want to Miss Tennis Sometimes'

Carlos Alcaraz is one of the most recognizable athletes on the planet — and that visibility, it turns out, comes with a real cost. The seven-time Grand Slam champion has opened up about feeling burnt out before a wrist injury sidelined him for over four months, and he's already plotting a different approach to how he manages his schedule.

The Burnout Was Real

Alcaraz won the Australian Open to start the year, but the grind that followed caught up with him fast. A right wrist injury struck in April, forcing him to sit out the French Open and Wimbledon — two events he'd have been among the favorites to win. The withdrawal from Wimbledon was a significant blow for fans and organizers alike, and it came after a stretch where Alcaraz was clearly running on empty.

Speaking to Sky Sports at London's O2, the Spaniard didn't sugarcoat it. He described the exhaustion as both physical and mental — and crucially, he said it wasn't just the tennis itself that wore him down. Every dinner out, every public appearance, every camera shoved in his direction added up. At the level Alcaraz operates, there's no such thing as a quiet walk down the street.

"You expose yourself in every tournament — not only on the court," he told Sky Sports. "Every time you go out for dinner, people stop you, people roll with cameras. Sometimes that's hard to deal with."

Home Is the Reset Button

Alcaraz said the only real refuge he has found is time at home, away from the spotlight, surrounded by family and close friends. He described it plainly as his "peace" — the place where he can decompress and just be himself without performing for anyone.

That kind of honesty from a top athlete is worth noting. Alcaraz isn't complaining — he's problem-solving. He acknowledged that going into tournaments feeling fresh and motivated is non-negotiable for him. Playing because he has to isn't an option he's willing to accept long-term.

A Smarter Calendar Strategy

Alcaraz made it clear he intends to be more deliberate about taking breaks, even if he can't always schedule them far in advance. His approach will be reactive — if the mind and body are flagging, he'll step back before it becomes a crisis. The lesson from this year is already baked in.

The ATP calendar has grown more demanding, with expanded Masters 1000 events now stretching to two weeks. That's a grind even for players who aren't dealing with superstar-level public attention. Alcaraz had already been flagged as facing a tough fitness test heading into the US Open, and after a solid comeback run in New York — where he reached the quarter-finals before falling to Ben Shelton in a five-set war that finished at 3:33am — it's clear he still has elite-level game when healthy.

Jamie Murray backed Alcaraz's thinking in comments to Sky Sports, pointing out that Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal both extended their careers by being selective about their schedules. Murray's view: the Tour needs to factor this in, because it's not just about the top names — it affects the broader player pool too.

The Bigger Picture

Alcaraz is 22 years old. He already has seven Grand Slam titles, a loyal global fanbase, and enough endorsement work to keep him in the public eye year-round. His celebrity profile has grown well beyond tennis, and that comes with demands that pile on top of an already packed tour schedule.

The smart move — the one he's now committing to — is treating recovery and absence as strategic tools rather than signs of weakness. Advocating publicly for structured breaks is a shift in mindset that could influence how younger players think about longevity in the sport.

Wanting to miss tennis sometimes isn't a red flag. For Alcaraz, it might be the most important thing he's said all year.