CARLOS ALCARAZ has entered next month’s Cincinnati Open to boost hopes he is close to returning from a wrist injury.

The seven-time grand slam champion has been sidelined since suffering the problem during the Barcelona Open in April, missing the defence of his French Open title and Wimbledon.

Alcaraz has posted videos of him making a tentative return to the court in the past couple of weeks but it appears he is targeting the Masters event in Cincinnati, beginning on August 13, for his comeback.

The 23-year-old is not on the entry list for the preceding Masters, the Canadian Open in Montreal beginning on August 2, but playing in Cincinnati would at least give him some match practice ahead of the US Open later in August, where he is also the defending champion.

Emma Raducanu, though, does not appear in the field for either event as she continues her recovery from a stress fracture in her lower right leg.

The British number one withdrew on the eve of Wimbledon with the problem and is facing a race against time to be fit for the US Open, which starts on August 30.

Jack Draper also missed Wimbledon due to a recurrence of bone bruising in his arm but is scheduled to return in Washington at the end of this month.

With his ranking having plummeted outside the top 100, though, Draper would need wild cards to enter the main draws in Canada and Cinicinnati.

New British number one Arthur Fery, whose ranking has soared to 36 thanks to his brilliant run to the Wimbledon semi-finals, earns direct entry to a Masters event for the first time in Cincinnati.