Alex Michelsen Is Latest Unfortunate Victim To Biggest Threat To 2025 Tennis Season So Far

Native Californian Alex Michelsen is the latest tennis player to succumb to a growing problem in 2025. Michelsen, 20, was forced to retire from his second-round match two games into it because of a stomach virus.

Players’ stomach issues have been more frequent and nearly as detrimental as injuries this year.  While it is mostly a problem on the ATP Tour, WTA player Peyton Stearns is recovering from e-coli.  Stearns had abdominal pains for weeks and was shocked when she got checked out and learned it was e-coli.

ATP Players Afflicted

Fans were shocked when Daniil Medvedev retired mid-match in Doha, seemingly out of nowhere.  He later confessed that he was dealing with food poisoning and could not continue.

The Acapulco tournament was also flooded with players dealing with either food poisoning or a stomach bug including Alexander Zverev, Tommy Paul, and Holger Rune.

What Is With This Rash Of Stomach Issues?

The stomach issues further underscore how difficult tennis is.  The players travel and train in different parts of the world week in and week out.  They are exposed to different foods while trying to keep a sense of normalcy in their schedules with climate, time, and food changes.

As hard as they try, they cannot control every variable that affects their body and performance, and that’s what we are seeing in the early part of the 2025 tennis season.

It is sad for the players and the fans when they cannot play. In the case of Alex Michelsen, who had to retire from Indian Wells, against Daniil Medvedev with a hometown crowd present, it is particularly tragic.

Hopefully, these problems lessen so that players stay healthy and tennis can take center stage instead of gastrointestinal discussions.

Defending champions Carlos Alcaraz and Iga Swiatek are still alive in the tournament.  Watch all of the live action from the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells on the Tennis Channel.