Alcaraz, Carlos (2003- )

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      Holger Rune Making a Name for Himself in Tennis

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      As the 19-year-old Carlos Alcaraz rose through the ranks in 2022, Rune, also 19, was marching through the top players. He even beat Alcaraz.Holger Rune speaks as he plays tennis — at a crazy fast pace, barely stopping to take a breath. His thoughts are deep and direct, as if he has much to say but not much time to say it.Rune’s footwork is exceptionally speedy, and his ascent up the rankings has kept pace. In just one year, he rose from outside the world’s Top 100 to a Top 10 ranking. He went from playing in lower-level tournaments at the beginning of 2022 to winning ATP events in Munich, Stockholm and Paris. At the Paris Masters, he upset five Top 10 players, including world No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz and 21-time Grand Slam singles winner Novak Djokovic, whom he beat in the final. At just 19, Rune was the ATP’s Newcomer of the Year, ending the season at No. 11.But there were problems for the Dane, whose squabbles with umpires, players and even his omnipresent mother, Aneke, garnered him unwanted attention. A verbal rumble after a loss to Casper Ruud in the quarterfinals of the French Open last year had both players accusing each other of insults and untruths.For Rune, who begins contesting his second Australian Open this Monday, it’s all part of the maturation process.The following interview has been edited and condensed.Last year, you lost your first-round match at the Australian Open to Soonwoo Kwon after leading by two sets to one. What do you remember about that match?I was still very inexperienced, and it was physically and mentally hard to play five sets. After the third set I started cramping a little bit. Now I have a good take on playing long matches. It’s about saving some energy, and you can only get that by experience.You were the No. 1 ranked junior in the world in 2019. Some juniors find the transition to the pro tour very difficult, but for you it was seamless. Why?First of all, it wasn’t easy even though it was going quick. For me it felt like it took a lot of time, but on paper it didn’t. I was very eager and took all the steps. I have a big will to go through any challenge I get on my way to getting closer to my dream. That’s my focus every day that I step on the tennis court.In juniors, it looked like you played best on clay courts. Then you won 19 of your last 21 matches last year indoors on hard courts. Is that your new surface?That’s a good question. I don’t know honestly if I’m a clay-courter or a hard-courter. It depends. That’s why when people ask me if hard, clay or grass is my favorite surface, I would say all of them.Last year you added Patrick Mouratoglou to your coaching team, but you’ve been working with Lars Christensen since you were very young. What’s the most important thing Lars has taught you?I would say the discipline. If you look at me now from five years ago, I’m very different. I’m more structured in everything I do, on the court and off. Lars is also very technical. He’s still trying to help me learn stuff, and I’m very eager to improve.You had huge wins over Djokovic, Alcaraz and [Alexander] Zverev in 2022. Which one meant the most?I had one against [Stefanos] Tsitsipas too. But I’ve got to say, all of them in a way. But right now I’d have to say Novak. To play him in a final with all of the emotions and stuff is very big.You set a goal last year to be in the Top 25, and you made it to the Top 10. Did that surprise even you?When you stay in the moment you’re not surprised when everything is going so fast. But when I look back, I feel very proud of what I achieved. Ranking goals are important, but you can’t really control them because it depends on so many things. I’m happy with how things are going, and I’m very motivated to be in the best shape as possible in Australia. More

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      U.S. Open Winner Carlos Alcaraz to Miss Australian Open With Injury

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      Alcaraz, 19, the world No. 1, said he had injured his right leg during training.The year’s first major tennis tournament suffered a major blow on Friday when Carlos Alcaraz, the precocious men’s world No. 1 from Spain, announced that he was withdrawing from the Australian Open with a right leg injury.Alcaraz, a 19-year-old phenom with an acrobatic and all-court game, won his first Grand Slam singles title in September at the U.S. Open in often-spectacular fashion, prevailing in a series of compelling and frequently lengthy matches.His four-set victory over Casper Ruud of Norway in the final was the capstone to a breakthrough season and propelled him to the top spot in the men’s rankings, but Alcaraz has struggled with his health since then: withdrawing from the season-ending ATP Finals in Turin, Italy, and Davis Cup Finals in Malaga, Spain, with an oblique muscle tear in his left abdominal wall.He has not competed in an official event since retiring from his match against Holger Rune, another gifted 19-year-old, in the quarterfinals of the Paris Masters in early November, though he took part in an exhibition in Abu Dhabi last month. Alcaraz returned to his training base in Villena, Spain, to recharge and rehabilitate for the 2023 season, but he said in a social-media post on Friday that he had injured the semimembranosus muscle in his right leg during a training session.“When I was at my best in preseason, I picked up an injury through a chance, unnatural movement,” he wrote, announcing his withdrawal from an exhibition next week near Melbourne and from the Australian Open, which will begin on Jan. 16.“I’d worked so hard to get to my best level for Australia,” he wrote. “It’s tough, but I have to be optimistic, recover and look forward.”Alcaraz’s withdrawal means that the Australian Open will be without the men’s No. 1 singles player for a second year in a row, albeit under starkly different circumstances.Last year, Novak Djokovic was deported from Australia on the eve of the tournament after arriving in the country without being vaccinated for the coronavirus and losing an extended and high-profile legal battle with the Australian government.But Australian government policy has changed, now allowing unvaccinated foreigners to enter the country, even without an exemption. Djokovic, a nine-time Australian Open singles champion, returned to Australia this year and has received a warm welcome so far on his way to the semifinals of the lead-in tournament in Adelaide this week.Though Alcaraz finished the season at No. 1, becoming the youngest man to do so, Djokovic finished 2022 with the momentum, winning the ATP Finals for the sixth time. It was a triumphant finish to his strangest and most tumultuous season, in which his unvaccinated status kept him from competing in two majors (the Australian Open and U.S. Open) and four Masters 1000 events in North America. He also received no ranking points for winning Wimbledon because of the tours’ decision to strip tournament of ranking points in light of its ban of Russian and Belarusian players.Despite that major mathematical handicap, Djokovic is still ranked No. 5 and was the heavy favorite to win the Australian Open even before Alcaraz’s withdrawal. But the Spaniard’s absence eliminates the enticing prospect of an intergenerational duel down under between the reigning No. 1 and the longest-reigning No. 1.Djokovic, the elastic 35-year-old Serbian, has held the top spot for a men’s record of 373 weeks and has a chance to reclaim that spot by winning a 10th Australian Open title.Alcaraz, who reached the third round in Melbourne last year, will have to watch from afar this time and steel himself for the long haul in a grinding, global, increasingly physical sport made all the tougher by a short off-season.He had a 2022 to savor, winning five singles titles and providing a surplus of social-media clip material with his airborne, all-action style and taste for the abrupt and spectacular change of pace: often a thunderous forehand followed by a deft drop shot. He was also sportsmanlike, giving opponents’ points and the benefit of the doubt on multiple occasions.But his torrid run clearly took a mental and physical toll. After winning the U.S. Open, he won just six of his next 10 singles matches, failing to reach another final. He also lost both matches in the Abu Dhabi exhibition in straight sets, to Andrey Rublev and Ruud.His staying power, unlike his luminous talent, is, for now, a question mark. More

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      Tennis Said Goodbye to Roger Federer and Hello to Carlos Alcaraz

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      The game went through a lot of changes and drama this year, including an emotional farewell to Serena Williams at the U.S. Open.Right after Brandon Nakashima won the ATP’s Next Gen Finals — a year-end championship for eight elite players ages 21 and under — in Milan last month, he headed to London for a vacation with his girlfriend.Walking through the Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park, with its holiday lights blazing, Nakashima, 21, realized that he, too, had blazed new trails in 2022.“It’s definitely been a very interesting year,” said Nakashima, who won his first ATP title in his hometown San Diego in September and ended the season ranked in the top 50 for the first time. “A year ago, I was playing mostly [low-level] Challenger tournaments and now I’m one of the standout new players rising up to challenge the older guys. That’s pretty exciting.”Brandon Nakashima, above, had a breakout year, capturing his first ATP title in September, and ending the season ranked in the top 50 for the first time. Matthew Stockman/Getty ImagesInteresting. Exciting. Melodramatic. Breathtaking. All apt descriptions of the 2022 men’s and women’s pro tennis season. With the emergence of Iga Swiatek and Carlos Alcaraz and the teary departures of Roger Federer, Serena Williams and Ashleigh Barty, it’s hard to remember a year in the sport quite like this one.When the season began in Australia in January, Covid was still a major issue. The nine-time Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic, whose steadfast refusal to be vaccinated for Covid-19 polarized fans worldwide, was detained for hours at the Melbourne Airport and then placed in lockdown at an immigration detention hotel.He was ultimately sent home just as the tournament was starting.With Federer in Switzerland nursing his ailing knee, Rafael Nadal, who had not won a major since the 2020 French Open, beat Daniil Medvedev for the men’s title and captured his 21st major championship, breaking a three-way tie with Federer and Djokovic.Nadal, who turned 36 in June, won his first 21 matches of the year until finally falling to Taylor Fritz in the final at Indian Wells in March. He then added a 22nd major by winning his 14th French Open.With much of the early-season drama on the men’s side, Barty, the world No. 1 and reigning Wimbledon champ, cruised through the women’s Australian Open, and became the first Aussie woman to win the title since 1978.Less than two months later, she announced her retirement, paving the way for Swiatek to become No. 1. Swiatek wasted no time in proving her worth, winning 37 consecutive matches from late February to early July and claiming her second French and first United States Opens.“I had times when I wasn’t that motivated,” Swiatek said during the year-end WTA Finals, where she lost in the semifinals to Aryna Sabalenka, who ended the year ranked No. 5. “I accept that I don’t have to feel always 100 percent motivated. But when I’m going on the court it’s still the same, I always want to win.”Serena Williams, above, gestured to the crowd at the 2022 U.S. Open after a match against Ajla Tomljanovic. Williams won two star-studded matches at the tournament, and announced her retirement after the Open.Danielle Parhizkaran/USA Today Sports, via ReutersIf Swiatek’s rise seemed meteoric, it was nothing compared with that of Alcaraz. Still a teenager, Alcaraz began the 2022 season ranked No. 32 and ended it as the youngest year-end No. 1, at age 19. It was the first time since 2003 that someone other than Djokovic, Federer, Nadal or Andy Murray finished the season atop the ATP rankings.In all, Alcaraz won five titles, including Masters 1000s in Miami and Madrid, where he upset three of the world’s top four players: Nadal, Djokovic and Alexander Zverev.“This was really a head-scratching season,” said the former world No. 1 Jim Courier by phone last month. “It’s hard to look at the two No. 1s and not be amazed. Iga grabbed the mantle and didn’t let go. And Alcaraz, who we expected would be great, did it way ahead of schedule.“There really were three legitimate No. 1s for the men this year,” Courier added. “Carlos earned it on points, but Novak was incredible, because in spite of not playing half the year, he didn’t suffer the emotional strain from being out of the game. But, in the end, I judge No. 1 on the majors and considering that Rafa won two of them, I would think most people would want his year most of all.”There were plenty of other breakout performances. Casper Ruud reached two major finals, losing to Nadal at the French Open and Alcaraz at the U.S. Open. He was also the runner-up to Djokovic at the ATP Finals.Holger Rune, 19, went from relative obscurity to capturing 19 of his last 21 matches, including a victory over Djokovic in the final of the Paris Masters. Fritz won in Indian Wells and took Nadal to five sets in the Wimbledon quarterfinals. Frances Tiafoe beat Nadal and Andrey Rublev before falling in five exuberant sets to Alcaraz in the semifinals of the U.S. Open. And Nick Kyrgios finally reached his first major final at Wimbledon.Elena Rybakina had a breakout season this year, capturing her first major at Wimbledon.Sebastien Bozon/Agence France-Presse — Getty ImagesElena Rybakina captured her first major at Wimbledon, while Ons Jabeur delighted fans by reaching back-to-back finals at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open. Coco Gauff reached the final at the French Open, which helped her become, at 18, the youngest woman since 2007 to finish the year ranked in the top 10.Jessica Pegula won the WTA 1000 event in Guadalajara and ended the season ranked No. 3. And Caroline Garcia, who began the year ranked No. 74 and considering retirement, stormed back, winning four titles, including the WTA Finals, and ended up No. 4.Year-end rankings might have been different had off-court drama not intervened. Djokovic was barred from two of the four majors, yet he still managed to win five of the 11 tournaments he entered. He was 42-7 on the season.Russian and Belarusian players including Medvedev, Rublev, Sabalenka and Victoria Azarenka were barred from all tournaments in the United Kingdom because of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, prompting both the ATP and the WTA to withdraw ranking points from Wimbledon, which skewed the ranking system.Team competitions flourished in 2022. Switzerland, led by Belinda Bencic, Jil Teichmann and Viktorija Golubic, won its first Billie Jean King Cup. And Canada, led by Felix Auger-Aliassime and Denis Shapovalov, began the year by winning the ATP Cup and ended it by winning the country’s first Davis Cup.There were ups and downs this year. Dominic Thiem, the 2020 U.S. Open champion, returned after nearly a year away because of a wrist injury. Zverev had an ankle injury at the French Open and did not play for the rest of the season. And former No. 1 Simona Halep was suspended after the U.S. Open when she failed a drug test.Holger Rune celebrating after defeating Novak Djokovic in the men’s singles final at the Paris Masters. Rune had a standout season, winning 19 of his last 21 matches.Julien De Rosa/Agence France-Presse — Getty ImagesThere were tears and cheers when Serena Williams — who announced her retirement after the U.S. Open — won two star-studded night matches there, including a victory over the second-seeded Anett Kontaveit. Williams lost to Ajla Tomljanovic, but the 23-time major winner was already hinting at a possible return before she had left Arthur Ashe Stadium.But by far the most gut-wrenching moment of the year was reserved for Federer, who played his last pro match at the Laver Cup in London in September alongside Nadal, his longtime rival and friend . With hugs and tears flowing, Federer ended a 24-year career that included 20 majors:eight at Wimbledon and six Australian, five U.S. and one French Opens.“Someone who I have admired, who I have rivaled and also I have shared many beautiful things on and off the court was leaving,” Nadal said of his post-match display of emotion, in an interview with Reuters. “You know you’re not going to live that again, and a part of my life left with him. It was also the emotion of saying goodbye to someone who has been so important to our sport.”The future of the sport is now in the youthful hands of Alcaraz, Swiatek, Gauff, Rune and Ruud. But even Nakashima knows there will never be another Federer.“I grew up watching him on TV and idolizing him,” Nakashima — who still has posters of Federer and Nadal on his bedroom wall — said by phone last month. “Unfortunately, I never got to meet him. But if I did, I would just thank him for everything he’s done for our sport.” More

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      The Forehand Slice, Once Disdained, Makes a Comeback

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      It was once considered a desperate shot, but experts say it can give players an edge. Coco Gauff and Carlos Alcaraz use it.Tennis players commonly hit three types of backhands — topspin, flat and slice — yet on the forehand, they have, in the modern game, traditionally limited their arsenal of shots to just the first two.The forehand slice — which involves sliding the racket beneath the ball to create backspin or sliding it to the left or right of the ball to create side spin — is used for drop shots but has long been frowned upon as a desperate play in an extreme situation. Yet while many players still view the shot with disdain, it is starting to get some respect as a shot that, when used strategically, can give players an edge.“There are a handful of players who use it as a tactic and who do it well,” says Madison Keys, a power player ranked as the world No. 11, who said she did not practice the shot much.Pam Shriver, a former Top 10 player who is now an ESPN commentator, used the forehand slice extensively during her playing career. She would like to see more players take the shot seriously.“It has become a really important specialty shot to have,” Shriver said, adding that it is particularly effective on fast, low-bouncing surfaces like indoor courts such as the Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, which will host this year’s WTA Finals. (The slice is less effective on clay.)The slice is most frequently used as a defensive shot when a player is stretched wide, but Shriver noted that it could also be effective to disrupt an opponent’s rhythm and keep the ball extra low, especially on the offensive approach shot.“Serena Williams introduced a generation of really dynamic and powerful players, but now you see the new generation getting more creative,” said Wim Fissette, a coach who has worked with several world No. 1-ranked women, including Simona Halep and Naomi Osaka. “It started a few years ago in men’s tennis, and now it’s happening in women’s tennis. With all that power, you need to develop ways to defend; you need creative solutions.”He, like many others, credits Roger Federer’s occasional “squash shots” — in which he would chop down on a ball to create a fast, low, hard-spinning shot — with giving the forehand slice momentum among modern players including Coco Gauff, Ons Jabeur and Carlos Alcaraz.“If you only hit powerful shots from the baseline, your opponent only has to run left and right,” Fissette said. “Federer started using his slice to bring the opponent into the court, taking them away from the baseline to where they weren’t as confident. The forehand slice is a way to find ways to break the rhythm of your opponent and to make the court bigger.”Karolina Pliskova playing a forehand slice during the 2021 Australian Open. According to the tennis coach Wim Fissette, the shot can help extend points and draw opponents to portions of the court where they are less comfortable.Daniel Pockett/Getty ImagesAdditionally, he noted that when a player “does not have their A game, they need a Plan B” and that using slices on defense can allow a player to fight their way into a match.Many players still think of the forehand slice as something to be used grudgingly and only when pulled wide, but Shriver points out that today’s open stances, combined with the ability to slide into shots even on hard courts, allow players extra reach, enabling them to flick a slice back even if they cannot get their full body into a shot for a flat or topspin ball.“More players are using the forehand slice, but as a defensive shot,” said eighth-ranked Daria Kasatkina, who, like Keys, does not practice the shot. She said she did not think about it tactically, employing it only when cornered by a hard-hit ball that forces her into a defensive play.Keys said she used the forehand slice only on the run and “when absolutely necessary.”Even top-ranked Iga Swiatek, who has a diverse array of weapons, said that while the shot “can really reset a rally,” it was not a priority for her. “I use it only when I can’t make another shot.”Fissette, the coach who worked with Halep and Osaka, said that it was worth doing speed training drills to practice those forehands on the run because it extends points, and that opponents who are not comfortable attacking the net will feel compelled to hit riskier groundstrokes closer to the lines, causing them to make more errors.He said Swiatek was adept at using the shot defensively but added that she, like Gauff, gripped the racket in a way that could make hitting low forehands difficult, especially when coming forward, and that the slice could be helpful there.“Players should be practicing the slice and practicing how to defend against that spin,” Shriver, the former player and commentator, said, citing Ons Jabeur as a player who uses the slice well defensively and offensively.Shriver and Fissette said it was an ideal approach shot, especially to an opponent’s forehand, because it kept the ball low and allowed the attacker to hit while moving through the ball, getting her to the net quicker. “Karolina Pliskova has an excellent down-the-line approach slice,” Fissette added. “I’d like to see more women develop that.”Fissette said that since WTA players were generally less comfortable at the net than men, the slice could also be effective to open the court and draw opponents to short shots that might be trickier for them to handle.That is especially worth trying on balls to your opponent’s forehand, Shriver said. If you slice to players’ backhands, they might just slice it back and then you would not gain an edge. But on the forehand, you want to keep the ball out of the main strike zone where players can really drive the ball, and lower shots are tougher for many players.“And the slice often has more than underspin, it also has a bit of side spin, which adds another element for them to deal with,” Shriver said.Neither Shriver nor Fissette thinks the shot will, or should become, as common as the backhand slice.“You have to pick the right ball and the right moment,” Fissette said,The backhand slice is a more natural shot, Shriver said, and “it can get really messy” when a player cannot find the feel for the forehand slice. Additionally, switching grips back and forth too much can throw a player’s power forehand out of sync.Still, “while the forehand slice is a gamble, it can be well worth it,” she said. “And it makes tennis more interesting to watch.” More

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      Roger Federer’s Retirement Makes Room for a New Era of Champions

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      Roger Federer’s retirement will auger opportunities for a new generation of players not named Rafael Nadal or Novak Djokovic.Upon learning that Roger Federer will retire after the upcoming Laver Cup, Judy Murray, the Scottish tennis coach and mother of Andy Murray, one of Federer’s great opponents, noted on social media that it signifies “the end of a magnificent era.”But Federer’s pending retirement, announced Thursday, also foretells the conclusion of a larger era defined by more than just him.For many, it is the greatest era of men’s tennis, one that includes the unsurpassed greatness of Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic. Collectively, the three helped define a transcendent and remarkably durable period in tennis history that also parallels the career of Serena Williams, who announced she was stepping away from the sport last month.On the men’s side, Federer, Nadal and Djokovic’s collective reign, which endured for two decades, was glorious for tennis fans. Their stubborn persistence also prevented numerous “next generations” from finding the spotlight.Nadal, 36, and Djokovic, 35, who won Wimbledon this year, will presumably still carry on a bit longer. But Federer’s announcement on Thursday reminded the tennis world that the end will eventually come for all three of them, leaving the stage to a host of hungry new players, some of whom have already muscled their way into the breach.Carlos Alcaraz, right, keeps a photo of himself with Federer on a bookshelf at his home in El Palmar, Spain.Samuel Aranda for The New York Times“Roger has been one of my idols and a source of inspiration,” Carlos Alcaraz, the new United States Open champion, posted on his Twitter account in tribute to Federer. “Thank you for everything you have done for our sport! I still want to play with you! Wish you all the luck in the world for what comes next!”What comes next is a peek into a future of men’s tennis minus one of its greatest male stars, and eventually all three of them.Alcaraz became the youngest men’s player to reach No. 1 when he captured the U.S. Open on Sunday at only 19. Others — including Casper Ruud, whom Alcaraz beat in the final; Daniil Medvedev, last year’s U.S. Open champion; Jannik Sinner, the promising 21-year-old from Italy; Nick Kyrgios; Frances Tiafoe; Felix Auger-Aliassime; and Denis Shapovalov — now can all ponder the possibilities that tennis mortality presents to them.“It’s been a privilege to share the court with you,” Shapovalov, 23, told Federer on social media Thursday.It will be a different kind of privilege — and opportunity — to play without him.But on the court, Federer’s retirement does not constitute a sudden change in the landscape. There were few expectations that, even if he could have rediscovered his health, Federer would come back to win more majors — not at 41, and not after three frustrating years trying to regain his footing. Nadal and Djokovic, on the other hand, remain the agenda setters in men’s tennis.Since 2019, they have combined to win 12 of the 15 major tournaments that were held. Had Djokovic not been barred from entering the United States this year, he likely would have been favored to win the U.S. Open, and if he had won, it would have given him and Nadal a sweep of this year’s majors.Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic before their French Open semifinal earlier this year.James Hill for The New York TimesTwo of the big three are still as dangerous as ever, and there is no fixed expiration date on either of them. There are concerns, though. Health has long been a nagging issue for Nadal, as it was at the U.S. Open, when he was ousted by Tiafoe in the fourth round after he returned from an abdominal strain that forced him out of Wimbledon.For Djokovic, there is the matter of his refusal to be vaccinated for the coronavirus, which prevented him from competing in this year’s Australian Open and U.S. Open. At least some doubt remains about Djokovic’s availability for those events next year, lending even more hope to the younger stars.So, can promising young players like those previously mentioned, plus No. 6 Stefanos Tsitsipas, No. 5 Alexander Zverev and Dominic Thiem, who won the 2020 U.S. Open, take advantage, as Alcaraz did? For the first time in 20 years, it seems possible, even with Nadal and Djokovic still standing in the way. But tennis has seen this before.In 2017, the A.T.P. launched the Next Generation Finals in Milan. Zverev, Medvedev and Karen Khachanov, who reached a U.S. Open semifinal last week, were all invited, along with Shapovalov, a Wimbledon semifinalist last year, and Jared Donaldson, who retired with an injury. Tiafoe and Tsitsipas were alternates.Since then, only Medvedev, 26, has won a major title. The rest of the time, he and the others were thwarted, often by one of the big three. It was the same for older players, too, like Andy Roddick, Stanislas Wawrinka, David Nalbandian, David Ferrer and Mikhail Youzhny, all of whom played for leftovers.Daniil Medvedev, who beat Djokovic to win the 2021 U.S. Open, is among the emerging generation of stars.Ben Solomon for The New York TimesSince 2004, Federer, Nadal or Djokovic has finished as the year’s No. 1 player except one, when Andy Murray earned the distinction in 2016.In 2018, when Youzhny retired, he said, “Sometimes these guys didn’t give anyone else chances to win. I can’t say I would have won more, but this is a great era for tennis.”Federer came into the game first, turning professional in 1998 and winning his first Grand Slam event at Wimbledon in 2003. Nadal was next, playing professionally since 2001 and winning the first of his 22 majors in 2005. Djokovic turned professional in 2003 and won his first major title in Australia in 2008.It seems natural that they should go out in the same order. Only then can a new generation of stars finally establish a new era, one that has been decades in the making. More

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      Timing Is Everything for Carlos Alcaraz

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      Alcaraz, the 19-year-old winner of the men’s U.S. Open, said he “worked really hard so that things like this could happen.”The U.S. Open victory party at Carlos Alcaraz’s Manhattan hotel wrapped up before 3 a.m. on Monday, which was early by his standards at this round-the-clock Grand Slam event.“I got to bed at 5:15 a.m. after the Cilic match, and 6 a.m. after the Sinner match,” he explained rather wearily as he sat in the back seat of a sport utility vehicle, shifting his gaze from his interlocutor to the streetscape outside the tinted windows.He was rolling toward Times Square for a rendezvous with his new trophy, and upon arrival, he stepped onto the sidewalk in his jeans and blue-and-white sneakers and was soon holding the silverware high with the photographers — professional and amateur — clicking away as a crowd began to gather.“Numero uno!” shouted someone in Spanish.Alcaraz took note, just as he had after waking up on Monday and looking at the updated ATP rankings on his phone.“I had to be sure,” he said.At 19, Alcaraz is the youngest No. 1 since the ATP rankings were created in 1973. That is quite a feat in a sport that has had plenty of prodigies: from Bjorn Borg to Mats Wilander, Boris Becker to Pete Sampras, to Alcaraz’s Spanish compatriot Rafael Nadal, who also won his first major at age 19 (at the 2005 French Open).But Alcaraz’s meteoric rise to the top has not been due simply to his genius — though the word, which should be used very sparingly in tennis or anything else, does seem to apply in his acrobatic case.His coronation is also due to timing:To Novak Djokovic’s refusal to be vaccinated for Covid-19, which kept him out of this year’s Australian Open and U.S. Open and four Masters 1000 events in North America.To Nadal’s limited schedule because of a series of injuries.To the extraordinary situation at Wimbledon, which Djokovic won again in July but which earned him no ranking points; the tournament had been stripped of points by the men’s and women’s tours because of Wimbledon’s ban on Russian and Belarusian players over the war in Ukraine.Alcaraz’s situation is radically different from the case of Nadal, who, as the longtime No. 2, had to chase Roger Federer for years before finally securing the top ranking.Alcaraz has reached No. 1 before the end of his second full season on tour and after winning his first major title with a four-set victory over Casper Ruud on Sunday.“Look, I don’t want to take credit away from myself,” Alcaraz said. “But it’s true that Rafa, Djokovic, Federer, they were in a period when they were all playing. I had the luck or whatever you want to call it that Djokovic could not play. Everybody has their reasons, but that is the reality. He could not play much for a while, and Rafa kept playing but not all year, either. But like I said, I don’t want to take credit away from myself. I have been playing all season, playing incredible matches and incredible tournaments, and I’ve worked really hard so that things like this could happen.”In an interview before the season, Alcaraz was asked which major tournament he would most like to win. The U.S. Open was his answer.Kena Betancur/Agence France-Presse — Getty ImagesAt the end of 2021, Alcaraz was considered one of the brightest young talents in the game and was ranked No. 32. Less than nine months later, he has won the Rio Open, Miami Open, Barcelona Open, Madrid Open and now his first Grand Slam title at the U.S. Open.Along the way, he has beaten the old guard, defeating Nadal and Djokovic in Madrid, and the new wave, defeating the 21-year-old Italian Jannik Sinner, the 24-year-old American Frances Tiafoe and the 23-year-old Ruud in New York.Alcaraz’s latest duel with Sinner in the quarterfinals was the match of the tournament, played at close to full throttle for five sets in five hours and 15 minutes, with Alcaraz saving a match point in the fourth set.It was also the latest-finishing match in U.S. Open history, wrapping up at 2:50 a.m., which is certainly notable but also a dubious honor even if the tournament presented him with a commemorative photo from that record-breaking match on Sunday.Finishing at that hour (and going to sleep at 6 a.m.) is no way for an elite athlete to optimize performance or for a major sports event to maximize its reach even if tennis is a global sport and 2:50 a.m. in New York is prime time in certain parts of the world.On the upside, this was the first time in U.S. Open history that all sessions in Arthur Ashe Stadium were sold out. That was due, in part, to the impact of Serena Williams’s announcement that the end of her career was imminent, which spiked interest in first-week tickets in Ashe Stadium.But Stacey Allaster, the U.S. Open tournament director, said officials would certainly take another look at the night-session schedule before the 2023 Open.But what is clear is that Alcaraz’s three consecutive late-night marathons did not keep him from the championship. He beat Marin Cilic, Sinner and Tiafoe in five sets before defeating Ruud, becoming the third man in the Open era to win a major after winning three consecutive five-setters. (Stefan Edberg did it at the 1992 U.S. Open, and Gustavo Kuerten did it at the 1997 French Open.)Like the elegant Edberg’s and the elastic Kuerten’s, Alcaraz’s powers of recovery were astonishing, and for now at least he plans to play in the Davis Cup for Spain later this week in Valencia after flying home.In an interview with the Spanish publication El País, Juanjo Moreno, Alcaraz’s physiotherapist, said Alcaraz had a “good genetic predisposition that we have managed to bring to its maximum splendor.”Moreno explained that the team paid close attention to Alcaraz’s hydration and energy replenishment during matches, which included the ingestion of caffeine, a legal supplement.But Moreno said post-match recovery was the key: focusing on the use of a stationary bike, hot-and-cold contrast baths, massage and what he calls the “four Rs.” Those are “rehydration, replenishment of muscle glycogen, restoration of lost amino acids and recovery for the immune system.”Quality sleep is also essential. “The other day, we helped him with a sleep supplement because we had given him a lot of caffeine,” Moreno told El País.But Alcaraz said on Monday that other less-scientific factors were also in play.“I’m 19 years old,” he said with a grin. “And I have worked a lot and very hard day to day on recovery, and I have a magnificent team.”He offered his thanks.“But above all, it was going on the court with the adrenaline, the matches and everything,” he said. “You forget the pain. You forget the fatigue, and you push through.”Alcaraz used the Spanish word “aguantar,” which his team kept shouting at him in New York from the players’ box.“Of course, I felt soreness,” Alcaraz said. “After so many matches, it was so difficult, and things are bothering you, but you have to fight through it.”He did so in often-spectacular style, displaying his phenomenal quickness and timing, his ability to adapt on the fly and his rare capacity to take big risks on big points that pay off.“You forget the pain. You forget the fatigue, and you push through,” Alcaraz said.Julian Finney/Getty ImagesIt is quite a skill set, quite a fan-friendly package, and it made for a much happier ending in New York than in his first appearance in 2021 when, after an upset of Stefanos Tsitsipas in the third round, he later had to retire with a leg injury against Felix Auger-Aliassime in the second set of their quarterfinal.“A year ago, I came here as a new guy, a kid who was experiencing everything for the first time, including Arthur Ashe Stadium,” Alcaraz said. “I think I was a player who could win against anyone but was not ready to have the physical, mental and tennis level for two full weeks.“One year later, I have changed a lot. I feel I am ready to hold this level.”The proof was there in Times Square on Monday as he held his trophy aloft, but, above all, the proof was there in Ashe Stadium night after late night as he held off rival after rival with the crowd of nearly 24,000 often making him feel like he was playing at home. (The Tiafoe match was an exception.)“I think my town in Spain has about the same population as Arthur Ashe Stadium,” said Alcaraz, who comes from El Palmar, a suburb of Murcia. “I took a moment during the final and looked around and to see all those people and all those seats filled to the top row was incredible.”During an interview before the season, Alcaraz was asked which major tournament he would most like to win. The U.S. Open was his answer.Mission accomplished even if the love affair may be only beginning.“I feel a special bond,” he said. “I think my game matches up with that court and what the people are looking for when they come. There’s energy. It’s dynamic, and I think they don’t know what I’m going to do next. I think that’s part of the connection.” More

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      Carlos Alcaraz Wins US Open Men’s Singles Title, and Becomes No. 1

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      Alcaraz, the 19-year-old Spanish sensation, beat Casper Ruud of Norway in four sets to capture his first Grand Slam championship and take the top spot in the ATP world rankings.The future of tennis arrived at 7:38 p.m. Sunday with a rocketed serve off the racket of Carlos Alcaraz, who clinched the U.S. Open men’s singles championship, announcing the start of a new era in the game.Alcaraz, the 19-year-old Spanish sensation, beat Casper Ruud of Norway, 6-4, 2-6, 7-6 (1), 6-3, to win his first Grand Slam singles title, but probably not his last. Far, far from it. A blasted serve that came off his racket like a missile sealed it. The Carlos Alcaraz era is here.On Sunday, he reached the sport’s pinnacle in grand fashion on its biggest stage, packing the nearly 24,000 fans in the stadium onto his bandwagon as he claimed not only the men’s singles championship and $2.6 million in prize money, but also the No. 1 ranking in the world, becoming the youngest man to do so. He is the youngest man to win a Grand Slam title since Rafael Nadal won the 2005 French Open as a 19-year-old.The dream becomes reality.@carlosalcaraz is a Grand Slam champion. pic.twitter.com/sPFaAiVFNR— US Open Tennis (@usopen) September 11, 2022
      Alcaraz’s rise to the top of the sport had been predicted for years, but it has been breathtaking nonetheless. His forehand is powerful, and his ability to chase down balls that other players would not bother trying to reach is thrilling to watch. He can hit the lustiest of winners when he gets to them, and he takes pure joy from competing, even in the middle of the night. He has dazzled crowds everywhere he has played during his first two years as a full-fledged professional, never more so than during the past two weeks of this unforgettable championship run.The ride began in 2021 in Australia, where he won his first main draw Grand Slam match on a court in the hinterlands of Melbourne Park with just a few dozen fans in attendance. He was outside the top 100 of the rankings then. In Croatia, last summer, he won his first tour-level title, and in New York starting a month later he blasted and drop-shotted his way into the quarterfinals as part of a teenage wave that took over the U.S. Open.This spring brought his first titles at the Masters level, just below the Grand Slams, in Miami Gardens, Fla., and Madrid, where he beat Nadal and Novak Djokovic in consecutive matches. Veterans playing him — and often losing — for the first time left the court shaking their heads, their eyes glazed, and at a loss for words about what they had experienced.“This is something I have dreamed of since I was a kid,” Alcaraz, not so far removed from youth, said during the trophy presentation, after he and Ruud acknowledged the solemnity of the 21st anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks in their moments of tennis heartbreak and triumph.Alcaraz’s victory was the capstone of a tournament that will be recalled for years for many reasons. There was the farewell to Serena Williams, widely considered the greatest female player of the modern era; the rise of Frances Tiafoe, the 24-year-old American son of immigrants from Sierra Leone, who knocked out Nadal and pushed Alcaraz to the limits in an electric five-set semifinal; and on Saturday, Iga Swiatek of Poland staked her claim as the new queen of the game, winning her third Grand Slam title in less than two years.The tournament set an all-time attendance record of 776,120 for the past two weeks, surpassing the previous record of 737,872, set in 2019.Alcaraz has become known for getting to balls other players wouldn’t think of reaching.Karsten Moran for The New York TimesOn Sunday, there was Alcaraz, doing the usual Alcaraz things. He sprinted from one corner of the court to the other, from the back wall to the edge of the net, whipping and spinning balls, and tantalizing and wowing a crowd sprinkled with the usual cast of celebrities befitting the final round. Years from now, the likes of Jerry Seinfeld, Anna Wintour, Questlove and Christie Brinkley can tell friends they were there when the teenager won his first Grand Slam title.The championship came at the end of an epic week for Alcaraz. Just to get to the final, he played three straight five-set matches, starting Monday, that had him on the court for some 15 hours. His quarterfinal victory over Jannik Sinner, during which he was one point from elimination, lasted until 2:50 a.m. on Thursday, the latest finish in the history of a tournament notorious for late endings. Two nights later, or rather, the next night, he outlasted Tiafoe in emotional, battle-filled, lung-busting rallies in a match with miraculous point-saving shots to the end.“I’ve never played a player who moves as well,” said Tiafoe, who has played the best of the best. “He’s going to be a problem for a very long time.”Alcaraz, though, said his first chance at a Grand Slam final was no time to be tired, and he started causing problems for Ruud early. Determined not to get into another marathon slugfest against an opponent as steady and as fit as anyone else in the field, Alcaraz stepped on the gas pedal from the start, rushing the net at every good chance and ending points with crisp volleys hit on the sharpest angles. Given what had transpired recently, Ruud had every right to expect Alcaraz’s unique style of tennis attrition. Instead he got shock-and-awe.Alcaraz grabbed the early edge in the third game. With Ruud serving, he eschewed any inclinations to ease his way into the match. With a chance to cause early damage, Alcaraz flicked on his afterburners and started grunting with late-match urgency and volume on every shot.After Alcaraz clinched that first service break, Ruud grabbed his towel near the corner of the court where his father and coach, the former pro Christian Ruud, sat a few feet above the court. Team Ruud needed a plan B.It took another 10 games for Ruud to find it, but he did. Down a set, Ruud pressured Alcaraz by putting ball after ball at his feet, then put on an Alcaraz-like display of power and touch and covered the court to even the match after an hour and a half, as Alcaraz’s efficiency, and his lethal drop-shot, went missing temporarily.Alcaraz collapsed to the court in joy after defeating Casper Rudd.Karsten Moran for The New York TimesThis was a different Ruud than the one who took a drubbing from Nadal in his first Grand Slam final at the French Open three months ago, on a day when he looked like someone with really good seats for the match rather than an opponent. Ruud was not going away on his own Sunday.But throughout the tournament, Alcaraz showed a rare ability to find the next gear to meet whatever challenge came his way. He put that on full display late in the third set, during a crucial, and for Ruud, soul-crushing stretch across a single game and a tiebreaker.With Alcaraz serving to stay in the set, Ruud poured every bit of his power and determination into a series of rocketed forehands that earned him two chances to move a set ahead. Each time, Alcaraz pressed forward, fearlessly pushing into the court chin first. His chance for a lead gone, Ruud crumpled in the tiebreaker with a series of wild misses as Alcaraz reeled off seven consecutive points.From there, holding back Alcaraz suddenly felt much like it has all year, a task akin to holding back an ocean. An absurd forehand, topspin lob while Alcaraz was running at full speed gave him the chance to get the crucial fourth-set service break. A point later, he did his best impression of a human backboard until Ruud could keep the ball in the court no longer.“Hard to believe he’s only teenager, but, yeah, he is,” Ruud said later. After the final point, a crushing service winner, Alcaraz collapsed on his back. A minute later he was embracing his longtime coach — the former world No. 1 Juan Carlos Ferrero — who has piloted the journey, along with Alcaraz’s father, a former pro himself, and his grandfather, who helped develop the tennis club where he started to play as a 3-year-old.When he made it back to his chair, Alcaraz put his face in a towel and sobbed, as Ruud sat stoically a few feet away. Ruud knew what had hit him, and knew that it could be the first of many days that end like this one. A little while later, Ferrero said Alcaraz had reached about 60 percent of his potential. “I want to be on top for many weeks, many years,” Alcaraz said later in a news conference. Then he pointed at the trophy. “I want more of these.”The era is just starting.Michelle V. Agins/The New York Times More