After falling in the round of 16 to our top seed Grigor Dimitrov in Shanghai, the Spaniard stated his desire to compete again this year. However, he was forced to withdraw from the tournament owing to injuries sustained to his back and left foot's plantar fascia.
Stan Wawrinka, a three-time Grand Slam champion and the official ambassador of the host country, will replace Alcaraz in the main draw, as revealed by the tournament's organizers in Basel.
"I'm sorry, but I can't make it to Basel this year to play! I need to get therapy to finish the season for my plantar fasciitis in my left foot and my lower back muscular exhaustion. The world's number two ranked player said he hoped to meet his fans again soon.
The 20-year-old prodigy's hopes of ending the year as the ATP's top player have been dealt a serious setback. After losing the historic five-set final with Djokovic at Wimbledon, Alcaraz went on to lose to Dimitrov in Shanghai and Yannick Siner in the semi-finals in Beijing. After Alcaraz was eliminated in the semi-finals by Daniil Medvedev, the Serbian came back into contention for the Masters trophy in Cincinnati and went on to win the US Open.
The Spaniard will spend some time in the hospital after falling 2,240 places behind the Joker in the ATP rankings. The Masters in Paris, a category 1000 event, follows shortly after Basel. /BGNES
