World number one Carlos Alcaraz confirmed on Saturday he will miss the ATP Finals and Davis Cup Finals with a stomach injury that forced him to retire from the Paris Masters quarter-finals.
Alcaraz called it a day during the second set of his match against fellow 19-year-old Holger Rune on Friday afternoon at the Accor Arena in bercy, south-eastern Paris.
"Having been evaluated by my medical team ... unfortunately this is the result of my injury: an internal oblique muscle tear in the left abdominal wall," Alcaraz said on social media.
He will be on the sidelines for around two months.
"Unfortunately I won't make the ATP Finals or the Davis Cup Finals," he added.
Following his victory at the US Open in September, Alcaraz became the youngest men's world number one since the the listings were computerized in August 1973.
He had been set to play in the ATP's eight-man season-ending event for the first time. His place in the elite field will be taken by Taylor fritz from the United States.
Losses
Alcaraz was also scheduled to lead Spain in the quarter-finals of the Davis Cup against Croatia at the end of November in Malaga.
"It is tough and painful for me to miss these two events, which are so important to me, but all I can do is be positive and focus on my recovery," added Alcaraz.
The injury terminates a dazzling season in which he has won his first Grand Slam trophy as well as two Masters 1000 events - considered to be the most prestigious crowns after the Grand Slam tournaments in Melbourne, Paris, London and New York.
He also claimed the competitions in Barcelona and Rio.
Reflecting on the moments preceding his withdrawal, Alcaraz said: "At the end of the set, it was wrong.
"It was getting wrong and I preferred to retire and take care about it.
"I couldn't serve well. I couldn't hit the forehand well. When I turned my body, I felt it.
"I was thinking about it. And playing like that with some problems and some things in my mind, it's better to retire."
Alcaraz would have been confirmed as the year-end world number one before the ATP Finals had he lifted the Paris Masters crown.
His conqueror Rune will take on the defending champion Novak Djokovic who is seeking a record-extending seventh title as well as a record extending 39th Masters 1000 trophy.
