NEW YORK, Sep 12: Walking out for his first Grand Slam final at age 19, Carlos Alcaraz bumped fists with fans leaning over a railing along the path leading to the Arthur Ashe Stadium court. Moments later, after the coin toss, Alcaraz turned to sprint to the baseline for the warmup, until being beckoned back to the net by the chair umpire for the customary pre-match photos.
Alcaraz is imbued with boundless enthusiasm and energy, not to mention skill, speed, stamina and sangfroid. And now he’s a US Open champion and the No 1 player in men’s tennis.
Using his uncommon combination of moxie and maturity, Alcaraz beat Casper Ruud 6-4, 2-6, 7-6 (1), 6-3 on Sunday to both earn the trophy at Flushing Meadows and become the youngest man to lead the ATP rankings.
“Everything came so fast. For me it’s unbelievable. It’s something I dreamed since I was a kid, since I started playing tennis,” said Alcaraz, whom folks of a certain age might still consider a kid.
“Of course,” he said, “I’m hungry for more.”
Alcaraz, who will move up three ranking spots from No 4 on Monday, already has attracted plenty of attention as someone considered the Next Big Thing in a sport dominated for decades by the Big Three of Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer.
“He’s one of these few rare talents that comes up every now and then in sports. That’s what it seems like,” said Ruud, a 23-year-old from Norway.
“Let’s see how his career develops, but it’s going all in the right direction.”
The Spaniard was serenaded by choruses of “Olé, Olé, Olé! Carlos!” that reverberated off the arena’s closed roof – and Alcaraz often motioned for the spectators to get louder. There were a couple of magical points that drew standing ovations, including one Alcaraz lost with a laser of an on-the-run forehand while ending up face-down on his belly.
He only briefly showed signs of fatigue from having to get through three consecutive five-setters in the three rounds right before the final; no one had gone through that arduous a route on the way to the title in New York in 30 years.
Alcaraz went five sets against 2014 US Open champion Marin Cilic in the fourth round, ending at 2:23 am Tuesday; against Jannik Sinner in the quarterfinals, a 5-hour, 15-minute thriller that ended at 2:50 am Friday after Alcaraz needed to save a match point; and against Frances Tiafoe in the semi-finals.
“It’s not time to be tired,” Alcaraz said.
This was not a stroll to the finish. He faced a pair of set points while down 6-5 in the third. Could have been an outcome-altering moment.
But Alcaraz erased each of those point-from-the-set opportunities for Ruud with the sorts of quick-reflex, soft-hand volleys he repeatedly displayed.
One break in the fourth was all it took for Alcaraz to seal the victory in the only Grand Slam final between two players seeking both a first major championship and the top spot in the ATP’s computerized rankings, which date to 1973.
The winner was guaranteed to be first in Monday’s rankings; the loser was guaranteed to be second.
Make no mistake: Ruud is no slouch. There’s a reason he is the youngest man since Nadal to get to two major finals in one season.
But this was Alcaraz’s time to shine under the lights.
Some perspective: He is the first teenager to win the US Open since Pete Sampras in 1990, the first to triumph at any Slam since Nadal at the 2005 French Open.
Another way to understand how precocious Alacaraz is: The last man to win this tournament by his second appearance was Pancho Gonzalez in 1948, before pros were allowed into the field.
Alcaraz is the first male teenager at No 1.
No one else did it. Not Nadal, not Djokovic, not Federer, not Sampras or anyone else.
When one last service winner glanced off Ruud’s frame Sunday, Alcaraz dropped to his back on the court, then rolled over onto his stomach, covering his face with his hands.
Many folks expect Alcaraz to be celebrating these sorts of feats for years to come.
“I want to be (at) the top for many, many weeks – I hope many years,” he said.
“I’m going to work hard again after this week, these amazing two weeks. I’m going to fight (to) have more of this.” (AP)
