Tennis commentator Martina Navratilova stated on June 29, 2026, that Carlos Alcaraz is heavily influencing competing athletes at Wimbledon through his distinct playstyle, despite his forced absence from the tournament due to a severe wrist injury.
The current World No. 2 sustained the injury at the Barcelona Open, which sidelined him from both Roland Garros and Wimbledon.
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He is expected to make his competitive return at the Canadian Open in early August.
Navratilova noticed the strategic impact of Alcaraz during her BBC commentary for the first-round match between Jelena Ostapenko and Harriet Dart at SW19, where she observed an unusually high frequency of drop shots from Ostapenko.
"Ostapenko has two drop shots in two games. Whose fault is that?
I blame [Carlos] Alcaraz for this!" said Navratilova.
The multi-time Wimbledon champion explained that the young Spaniard popularized the specific tactic, prompting other professional players to integrate it into their own repertoires after witnessing its ongoing effectiveness on the court.
"He started the drop shot mania and now so many players are seeing how effective it is and using it a lot more," said Navratilova.
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Expressing her desire to see the young star recover fully, the veteran commentator directly addressed his prolonged absence from professional tennis circuits.
"We need him on the court," she said.
Alcaraz faces a potential decline in tennis rankings because he cannot defend the 1,300 ranking points earned during his runner-up finish in the 2025 season.
Jannik Sinner defeated Alcaraz in that final, marking the Spaniard's first Wimbledon loss in three years following his championship titles in 2023 and 2024.
This absence creates an opportunity for World No. 3 Alexander Zverev to surpass Alcaraz in the global standings, as only 970 ranking points separate the two players.
Zverev, who lost in the first round last year, needs to reach the tournament final to secure the higher ranking.
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Because Zverev is positioned on the opposite side of the tournament draw from top-seeded Jannik Sinner, he remains the favorite to advance from his section.
