What was presumed to be a test of true level, due to the rival and the scale, finally turns out to be little more than another filming session in which Carlos Alcaraz climbs another step and confirms what was suspected: even so, coming from where he came from and how he came, after four and a half months of absence (139 days), it is enough for him to disembark at least in the quarterfinals of this US Open in which a lot would have to change things so that he does not continue progressing even further. The Spaniard beats Tommy Paul with little more than a whistle, without having to force too much (6-4, 6-3 and 6-4, in 2h 21m) because the reality is still overwhelming: his tennis is too exquisite and that of the others, for the most part, too precarious.
"I played a very complete match from the beginning to the end. I left very few options for Tommy to be there. I was confident that I could play at this level, that I can already give a fairly high level," he says in statements collected by Movistar+, without yet knowing that he will face another local tennis player on Tuesday, Ben Shelton, superior to Stefanos Tsitsipas (6-2, 6-3 and 6-4); "The only thing that's on my mind is the physicality. It's the first tournament after so long and, despite having played four games, you don't know how it's going to go... We're going so far to the limit that a bad gesture can change everything, and it's the only thing we're paying attention to. Everything is going great."
Nothing, not even the long period of convalescence, seems to have altered the logical state of things. The exceptional attributes of the Spaniard remain intact, resplendent, basically lacking in shoring up some nuances, while the rest—from the fourth step of the ranking down, Zverev delimiting the border—continues to lurch. With a few candidates already out, the American Paul is also heading out, a tennis player who on other occasions had offered laudable resistance and who this time resigns quickly. There is no tension, although two opposing forces collide: despite what is known, one is desire and conviction, while the other (29 years old and 21st in the world) replies as best he can, practically surrendered. Knowing you were an early loser. Whatever the case, Alcaraz's powerful halo is too intimidating for all earthlings.
With the exception of the set conceded in the second round against the Portuguese Jaime Faria, the Murcian's reintegration into the circuit has so far gone along the best of paths, without anyone having been able to put him in a real bind yet; Not even Paul, a very tough player who is never able to put him in trouble. Yesterday and today, except on very rare occasions, Alcaraz (23 years old) and Jannik Sinner (25) seem to compete in another dimension, as if they both belonged to a different league and there was no room for dissidents. The Italian is not there, so as the days count down and he crosses off boxes, the candidacy of the number three in the world takes on more substance. Arrived here and without bad signs on the wrist, it seems to depend on itself.
In your style
No one would say that Alcaraz is testing himself, but on the contrary: every day he seems a little stronger, more confident, more stable. Go up another step. There are no hesitation. Seen in white and brown, or this time in blue and black, it continues to strengthen and rearm itself, so that the chances of others diminish. If two days before he suffered from a certain excitement, this time he walks around the track with firmer and gentler gaits, as if he had everything more or less under control and victory was a simple matter of inertia. The good guys usually win. And logic is wreaking havoc this Sunday: demolition in slow motion.
He starts with a handful of violent balls and when the decisive hour of the first quarter approaches, he goes all out. In the exchanges there is simply no color, and if the service to the American, his float, fails, the story ends. Game over for him. He delivers a delicious shot around the outside of the net as soon as the action begins, but the rest translates into an exercise in frustration: it doesn't matter what he does, because he will fall. It doesn't matter how hard he hits it, because Alcaraz will be there to put the racket, just a couple of meters from the net, and return it incredibly. Paul suffers (“come on, Carlos…”) and the duel develops without any emotion, or perhaps only the emotion produced by seeing someone out of the ordinary live. Which is not little.
With the court full at midday, the public appreciates an evolution and an increasingly established tennis player, who improves with the serve - again maximums of 200 km/h - and who, from one round to the next, gains order. If the previous episode against the Chinese Yibing Wu was stressful, despite what the score might express, this one against Paul ends up becoming a little more than two pleasant hours in which he rehearses shots, polishes his reflexes and refines his shot. The serious gesture predominates, but he enjoys it. He handles it as he pleases. He delivers a blow from under the legs and resolves without the rival, with little faith, even managing to tickle him. As if you were watching one of those easy but enjoyable movies, with a very predictable outcome.
There is no twist or suspense, but only a winner who swings in the chair to the rhythm of Alicia Keys' Empire State of Mind (that's how relaxed he is) and when he closes it he merges with his brothers, in a nod to the Dragon Ball series. Tricks for everything. Fire: shots without letting it fall, left open, three crossed right hands that finally put the stands on their feet. In the middle of a rather flat tennis landscape, his reinstatement is a blessing. “He's like Federer, Nadal and Djokovic, he plays when he feels like it,” says Andre Agassi. And so it is. “I have played my game, with my style,” he transmits. “It doesn't matter how long I've been away, every time I come here I bring out my best tennis.” Uncork it on this barbecue Sunday, a day of fun.
MORE SPEED, FEARS AWAY
A.C. | New York
Alcaraz's shots are regaining their naturalness, which means that little by little the speed that so impacts and seduces among fans returns. The match against Paul was full of oooohhhs! and especially when his drive fired a cross shot that reached 164 km/h.
Metrics have recorded shots of up to 181 km/h, but the scene is symptomatic: fears are gone. He is releasing his forehand. He signed 33 winners, 12 more than in the previous duel, and took 75% of the points settled under his first serve, above the other three episodes.
Alcaraz maintains an idyllic relationship in New York, where in 2022 he won his first major and became the youngest number one in history, at 19 years old. He triumphed for the second time a year ago, when he completed a spectacular journey; probably the most powerful so far.
The link between him and the city of skyscrapers translates into 28 victories and three defeats, which raises his success rate to 90.3%. In this way, the Murcian dominates the history of the tournament above Pete Sampras (89%), Roger Federer (86.4%), Novak Djokovic (85.6%) and Jimmy Connors (85.2%).
From a broader perspective, that of the hard court and the big stages, the one from El Palmar (23 years old) is in the third place of all time, with 86.8%. Only Djokovic (88.1%) and Federer (86.8%) surpass him.
