Carlos Alcaraz withdraws from Barcelona; Rafael Nadal to face Flavio Cobolli

A Spanish superstar has withdrawn from next week's ATP 500 in Barcelona, but it's not the one tennis fans might suspect.

Carlos Alcaraz, who did not compete in this week's Monte Carlo Masters due to a right arm injury, will also skip play this week, according to various reports on X:

The two-time defending champion in Barcelona, who won Indian Wells less than a month ago, was in Monte Carlo "trying to recover until the last minute from an injured pronator teres in my right arm," but ultimately pulled out of the year's first clay-court Masters 1000 event. The injury persists.

Alcaraz is also the two-time defending champion in Madrid, where he will next try to return to action.

As for that other Spanish superstar, Rafael Nadal, the 37-year-old is entered in the Barcelona draw and will face Flavio Cobolli in his opening match. Nadal has won Barcelona a staggering 12 times, but has not competed since the first week of the season in Brisbane.

Video of the 22-time Grand Slam champion hitting against Andrey Rublev surfaced on social media yesterday: