By Richard Pagliaro | Wednesday, April 22, 2026
Photo credit: Hameltion/Wikimedia Commons
Arthur Cazaux hopes ligament transplant surgery will enable him to play pain-free tennis in the future.
World No. 73 Cazaux will be sidelined for at least six months after undergoing elbow surgery today.
Cazaux had surgery on his right elbow to correct a ligament injury that had been causing him prolonged pain. The 23-year-old Frenchman said he had been playing with elbow pain for the past 18 months.
“Still hurting my right elbow, had to resolve myself to go through surgery on Wednesday,” Cazaux posted on Instagram. “It’s been a year and a half that I’ve been carrying pains that prevented me from leading matches and tournaments. I couldn’t heal, so we decided to operate.
“I suffered from instability in my right elbow due to a ligament disinsertion which had created an injury. So this Wednesday in Bordeaux I underwent a ligamentoplasty – a ligament transplant to strengthen the ligament, strengthen the elbow and clean the tendon by removing the damaged part. Surgery went well.”
Cazaux’s last Tour match was a 7-6, 6-1 Miami Open second-round defeat to Frances Tiafoe.
A 2025 Kitzbuhel finalist, Cazaux fell to Alejandro Tabilo in five sets in the 2025 French Open first round. Cazaux said recovery from surgery means he will miss the final three Grand Slams of the 2026 season. He aims to return to the Tour in about six months.
“Certainly, I draw a mark on the 3 remaining Grand Slam tournaments in 2026, with the goal of resuming in 6 months,” Cazaux said. “But it’s a long-term decision: heal my elbow once and for all, prepare for the best for 2027 and be able to chain the seasons.
“I will come back stronger!”