Will Alcaraz, who was unexpectedly injured in the first round at Tokyo, be able to compete smoothly in the second round?

The afternoon before yesterday, during the ATP500 Tokyo first round, the versatile Spanish player Alcaraz, who recently won the US Open and returned to the top of the world rankings, met a tough opponent in Argentina’s rising “dwarf tiger” Báez.

Born in December 2000 and measuring 1.70 meters tall, Báez is another Argentine “dwarf tiger” who rose after Schwartzman retired. In 2018, Báez was runner-up in the French Open juniors and reached the junior world No.1, turning professional the same year.

In 2022, Báez claimed his first ATP250 title at the Estoril Open; this year, he successfully defended his ATP500 Rio title. So far, he has won seven tour singles titles, six of which came on clay courts, establishing himself as a clay-court specialist. On June 24, 2024, Báez reached his career-high ranking of world No.18 and currently ranks No.41.

Facing such a second-tier player, world No.1 Alcaraz should have had no trouble passing the first round, mainly using the match to train and regain competitive form. Unexpectedly, after a balanced 2-2 in the first four games of the opening set, the fifth game suddenly changed everything.

Alcaraz twisted his left foot while running and fell down in pain. For a moment, the entire arena fell silent. Fans watching worldwide and those present were all worried about the severity of Alcaraz’s left foot injury. Fortunately, after brief treatment and bandaging, Alcaraz returned to the court, persevered through the match, and defeated Argentina’s new “dwarf tiger” Báez in straight sets, 6-4, 6-2, advancing to the second round in Tokyo.

After the match, Alcaraz admitted, “When I injured my left foot, the pain was intense, and I was really concerned whether I could continue. Thankfully, the tournament doctor examined me, treated, and bandaged the injury, and I managed to finish the match. I will focus on treatment and recovery to try to compete in the second round.”

Current reports indicate that Alcaraz’s left ankle sprain is not severe, with no ligament tears or structural damage—only some swelling and mild pain. Therefore, Alcaraz has not announced withdrawal. Whether he can compete smoothly in the second round match starting at 4:30 PM today will be decided by him and his coaching team based on pre-match training conditions.

Alcaraz’s second-round opponent is Belgian player Berghes. Berghes performed excellently in the first round, overturning a defeat to eliminate Chilean talent Tabillo, who just won the ATP250 Chengdu title last week. It’s worth noting that Tabillo’s Chengdu final opponent was none other than Musetti, the Italian 2000-born rising star who has been ranked in the world’s top ten this season. Even more impressively, Tabillo defeated Serbian star Djokovic twice consecutively last year at the Rome Masters third round and this year at the Monte Carlo Masters second round. Berghes’s comeback victory over Tabillo proves his strength should not be underestimated.

Born in June 1999, Berghes turned professional in 2018. He reached a Grand Slam third round for the first time at the 2024 French Open and won his first Masters match at the 2024 Shanghai Masters. In 2025, Berghes made progress by reaching the finals of both ATP250 Auckland and ’s-Hertogenbosch tournaments; at the Miami Masters, he defeated Russian Rublev in the second round, marking his first career win over a top-10 player. Although he exited in the first round at the Australian Open, French Open, and Wimbledon, he advanced to the third round at the US Open. On September 22, Berghes achieved a career-high world ranking of No.45.

Facing the energetic Berghes, can world No.1 Alcaraz compete smoothly at 4:30 PM today in the ATP500 Tokyo second round? And can he avoid an embarrassing early exit?

(Source: Tennis Home, Author: Qicai Doufen)