Carlos Alcaraz shares positive update after ankle sprain injury in Rio: “See you in Indian Wells!”

Carlos Alcaraz’s fans are breathing a sigh of relief after the world No. 2 shared an encouraging update following his grisly ankle injury at the Rio Open on Tuesday.

Alcaraz, a former champion in Rio de Janeiro, rolled his ankle in just the second point of his opening match against home favorite Thiago Monteiro, and was forced to retire after two games. But according to the Spaniard’s medical team, he will only be “out for a few days” and should be back in time to mount his BNP Paribas Open title defense.

“I just had an MRI on my ankle after yesterday’s injury,” he wrote on Instagram. “After the meeting with my doctor (Dr. Juanjo López) and my physiotherapists (Juanjo Moreno) and (Sergio Hernández) the diagnosis is a grade II lateral sprain.

“I have a sprain that will keep me out for a few days! See you in Las Vegas and Indian Wells!”

The positive news also echoes the physios’ original assessment in Rio. The 20-year-old appeared visibly distraught on Tuesday evening as the tournament staff treated his ankle and as he attempted to play on, but he appeared in higher spirits later during his post-match press conference.

“I don’t know yet, that’s the truth… Let’s see if it’s something serious or not,” Alcaraz told journalists. “I mean, the physios told me that they think that it’s not too serious...

“I was feeling the pain. I couldn’t move well and I knew that it was going to be impossible to continue without pain and it was going to be worse if I still play in such a tough match or long match. That’s why I choose to retire.”

WATCH: Carlos Alcaraz shares physios told him Rio Open ankle injury is "not too serious"

Alcaraz will have just under a month to recover from the injury for a Las Vegas exhibition match set for March 3, where he is set to face fellow Spaniard and 22-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal.

Nadal himself recently pulled out of an ATP 250 event in Doha as he continues to recover from a hip flexor injury. The Spaniard hurt himself during last year’s Australian Open, and missed the rest of the season needing surgery and time to recover. He played three matches in Brisbane this year in January, but has not been back in action after pulling out of the Australian Open.

For Alcaraz, the ankle injury is just the latest blow in a 2024 season that has not started according to plan. The 20-year-old fell in the Australian Open quarterfinals to an inspired Alexander Zverev 6-1, 6-3, 6-7 (2), 6-4, cutting short his quest for a third Grand Slam title. And he’s still looking for his first title of the year, having reached the semifinals in Buenos Aires last week before being stunned by Chile’s Nicolas Jarry 7-6 (2), 6-3 and bowing out of his opeing match in Rio.