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Alcaraz Celebrates 20th Birthday with Return to Madrid Final

Spain's Carlos Alcaraz celebrates beating Croatia's Borna Coric during their 2023 ATP Tour Madrid Open tennis tournament singles semi-final match at Caja Magica in Madrid on May 5, 2023. (AFP)
Spain's Carlos Alcaraz celebrates beating Croatia's Borna Coric during their 2023 ATP Tour Madrid Open tennis tournament singles semi-final match at Caja Magica in Madrid on May 5, 2023. (AFP)
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Alcaraz Celebrates 20th Birthday with Return to Madrid Final

Spain's Carlos Alcaraz celebrates beating Croatia's Borna Coric during their 2023 ATP Tour Madrid Open tennis tournament singles semi-final match at Caja Magica in Madrid on May 5, 2023. (AFP)
Spain's Carlos Alcaraz celebrates beating Croatia's Borna Coric during their 2023 ATP Tour Madrid Open tennis tournament singles semi-final match at Caja Magica in Madrid on May 5, 2023. (AFP)

Carlos Alcaraz celebrated his 20th birthday on Friday by returning to the Madrid Open final after beating Borna Coric in straight sets.

The defending champion defeated the 17th-seeded Coric 6-4, 6-3 on the outdoor clay in yet another dominant performance by the home favorite.

The second-ranked Alcaraz will play Jan-Lennard Struff or Aslan Karatsev in Sunday’s final.

Alcaraz is aiming for his fourth title of the season after triumphs in Buenos Aires, Indian Wells, and Barcelona. The Spaniard is also preparing for the French Open this month.

If Alcaraz successfully defends his title in Madrid, he will recover his world No. 1 ranking by playing one match in Rome next week.

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Kyrgios’ Return to Grand Slam Tennis Is in Doubt Ahead of the Australian Open

Nick Kyrgios of Australia and Novak Djokovic of Serbia (not pictured) hit a return against Michael Venus of New Zealand and Nikola Mektic of Croatia during their men's doubles match at the Brisbane International tennis tournament in Brisbane on January 1, 2025. (AFP)
Nick Kyrgios of Australia and Novak Djokovic of Serbia (not pictured) hit a return against Michael Venus of New Zealand and Nikola Mektic of Croatia during their men's doubles match at the Brisbane International tennis tournament in Brisbane on January 1, 2025. (AFP)
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Kyrgios’ Return to Grand Slam Tennis Is in Doubt Ahead of the Australian Open

Nick Kyrgios of Australia and Novak Djokovic of Serbia (not pictured) hit a return against Michael Venus of New Zealand and Nikola Mektic of Croatia during their men's doubles match at the Brisbane International tennis tournament in Brisbane on January 1, 2025. (AFP)
Nick Kyrgios of Australia and Novak Djokovic of Serbia (not pictured) hit a return against Michael Venus of New Zealand and Nikola Mektic of Croatia during their men's doubles match at the Brisbane International tennis tournament in Brisbane on January 1, 2025. (AFP)

Nick Kyrgios’ planned return to Grand Slam tennis at the Australian Open is in doubt after he sustained an abdominal injury and was forced to withdraw from an exhibition with Novak Djokovic this week.

The 2022 Wimbledon finalist, sidelined with wrist and knee injuries since the 2022 US Open, said in an Instagram post Wednesday that an ultrasound scan had revealed an abdominal strain and "unfortunately (I) won’t be able to play my good friend (Djokovic) this Thursday."

He said he’d be resting and doing everything possible to be ready for the Australian Open, which starts Sunday at Melbourne Park.

The mercurial Australian, who has become a popular commentator during his lengthy stints on the injured list, made his competitive comeback last week at Brisbane, where he played one singles match and partnered with Djokovic in two doubles matches.

Djokovic and Kyrgios won their opening doubles match, a crowd-pleasing, fist-pumping affair by both players at Pat Rafter Arena before a 6-2, 3-6, 10-8 loss to Nikola Mektic of Croatia and New Zealander Michael Venus.

Australian Open tournament director Craig Tiley remained confident Kyrgios would play at the year's first major.

"I think it’s just precautionary, that’s the word we’ve got from him," Tiley said Wednesday, responding to questions about the potential absence of the star Australian. "Nick’s not the only one not doing some of their pre-planned matches over the next few days. There’s no concerns ahead of the Open."