👋 Welcome back to The Daily Theory, our morning rundown to help you stay on top of your favorite sport. I’m Allen McDuffee, your guide to all things tennis.

On tap today: Carlos Alcaraz withdraws from Madrid, Moutet’s behavior requires punishment, Iga Swiatek takes on Alexandra Eala, plus more in today’s tennis.

Let’s tennis!

Three Points

🎾 Alcaraz out: Carlos Alcaraz has withdrawn from the Madrid Open, citing injuries to his right adductor muscle and his left hamstring. During a press conference on Thursday, the 21-year-old Spaniard said he sustained the injuries during the final of the Barcelona Open against Holger Rune and was unable to practice all week in Madrid.

  • What he said: “I was talking with my team, with the doctors, to see if I would be able to arrive to play in Madrid in good condition. I did everything possible to be able to play … But I wasn’t able to improve things enough,” said Alcaraz. “We took the decision not to take risks for the future ... I think we have made the right decision. Now I will try to relax, to recover, and to be back on the courts as soon as possible.”
  • Next: Alcaraz said he would travel to Rome with the hope of competing in the Italian Open, noting it is unclear if that will be possible. Either way, he said, he would be prepared for Roland-Garros. “If I don’t play Rome, or if I don’t play any tournaments before Roland-Garros, I don’t care about it,” he said. “I know what is my level, I know what I have to do to play good tennis.”

🎾 Half-hearted (again): Booed and jeered, Corentin Moutet’s first-round match against fellow Frenchman Harold Mayot came to an end early after he destroyed his racket and retired in the middle of the second set. Down 6-3, 3-2, Moutet smashed his racket and walked to his chair to grab a new one, but then retired instead.

  • Nobody’s buying it: Moutet then took to X to say he had been struggling with back pain, noting, “I wanted to try today but I didn’t know that it would be that bad...All the best to my opponent for the rest of the tournament.” First, that’s a strange way to refer to your compatriot. Second, there was no evidence of a back injury.
  • The takeaway: This isn’t the first time Moutet has disengaged rather than digging deep. He’s tanked matches, feigned injury, gotten chirpy with crowds, made up issues with officials, and picked fights with his opponents — almost anything to take on the battle in front of him. Like they say, when the going gets tough, Corentin Moutet goes to the locker room — and these exits require ATP punishment.

🎾 Gael goes forward: In a late Wednesday match, 38-year-old Gael Monfils outlasted Borna Gojo in a three-set victory with some serious twists and turns. That included testing out the video review system on a controversial call, which delayed the match several minutes.

  • What he said: “At the beginning, he served one second serve,” Monfils said of Gojo. “I think he had a 94 first-serve percentage, he played great. I [let the] storm pass, then different tactics. I served more with kick and tried to play a little bit different, maybe let him go and not do so much. At the end, just run, run to the ball. It’s not a pretty win, but it’s a win.”