Alcaraz goes for the US Open title against Ruud after defeating Tiafoe
Carlos Alcaraz and the norwegian Casper Ruud will play the final of US Open this Sunday after the Spanish teenager stopped short the aspirations of the American Frances Tiafoe after beating him in five dramatic sets, in one of the most spectacular matches ever seen in the stadium Arthur Ashe.
The Alcaraz-Tiafoe semifinal lasted four hours and 19 minutes, with the score 6-7(6), 6-3, 6-1, 6-7(5), 6-3. From him Ruud obtained his pass to the final by beating the Russian Karen Khachanov by 7 (7) -6 (5), 6-2, 5-7.
Alcaraz and Tiafoe went to great lengths to offer the best of each one and leave their souls on the court before an audience that equally celebrated the physical and tennis display of both in a duel that made it very clear that we have fully entered a new chapter of this sport without the big three that dominated the scene in the last two decades: Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic or Roger Federer.
the former first lady MichelleObama who surely attended to see the local Tiafoe emerge victorious, had only to applaud the feat of “Carlitos” Alcaraz as well as the other 23,000 fans who filled the Ashe. The score was 6-7(6), 6-3, 6-1, 6-7(5), 6-3 after four hours and 19 minutes of the match.
Alcaraz’s route to the final
To reach the grand final, Alcaraz, number 4 in the ATP rankings, had to win consecutive five-set matches in the early morning, including a quarterfinal victory over Jannik Sinner, who broke the record for the match concluded later (2: 50 am) and also, the second longest in the history of the US Open, five hours and 15 minutes.
Alcaraz has had explosive growth this season, winning four titles, two of them at the 1,000 Masters in Miami and Madrid, consolidating himself as the new star of tennis today.
Ruud precisely played the final in Miami where he was defeated by Alcaraz. But perhaps the other result to highlight was reaching the final of the French Open, where he lost to Rafael Nadal.
The dispute to be number 1 in the world
On Sunday Alcaraz and Ruud are going for greater glory than winning the US Open, both are fighting for the first position in the world ranking, which for the moment is held by the Russian Daniil Medvedev.
But it will have much more meaning for the Spaniard than to lift the trophy of the last Grand Slam of the year, at the age of 19, who turned on May 5, he can become the youngest champion of the New York Open since the American Pete Sampras achieved it in 1990.
Meanwhile, if Ruud wins the title, apart from becoming the No. 1 player in the world he would also be the first Norwegian to reach the highest position in tennis and only the fourth Scandinavian to reach the top of tennis after the Swedes Björn. Borg, Mats Wilander, and Stefan Edberg.
Ruud, 23 years old and number 7 in the ATP ranking, reached the final after beating Italian Matteo Berrettini, Kyle Edmund, Tim Van Rijthoven, Tommy Paul and Corentin Moutet.
