“Carlitos” Alcaraz fulfills his dream, is champion of the US Open

The Spanish Carlos Alcaraz achieves glory and twice: champion of the US Open, his first Grand Slam title and since then, the new number one in the world. In four exciting sets 6-4, 2-6, 7(7)-6(1), 6-3 after 3 hours and 20 minutes.

Alcaraz, 19 years and four months old, also becomes the youngest tennis player to reach the top of tennis and, additionally, the youngest in the last 32 years to lift the New York Open champion trophy.

“It’s something I dreamed of since I was a child. It is difficult to express it, I have many emotions, I have worked a lot, together with my team, my parents, this moment is very special for me”, Alcaraz said on the Ashe field.

“My mother is not here today. I would have wanted her to be there, I miss my grandparents, my family, how nice they were to share these moments ”.

“I thank the Spaniards who came, those who came from all over the world. The public has been incredible, I have never felt as much support and affection as in New York”, added Alcaraz in Spanish, who later received the trophy from John McEnroe.

The man born in El Palmar, Murcia, in his speech also recalled the victims of the terrorist attacks of September 11 in New York 21 years ago, a gesture that the public applauded thunderously.

After reaching the final after playing the last three matches in marathon five sets (Marin Cilic, Jannik Sinner, Frances Tiafoe) Alcaraz is crowned champion after seven victories in which he played a total of 23 hours and 40 minutes.

A first set in which what was to come would be outlined is a Grand Slam final match: a show to be remembered forever. Alcaraz and Ruud started with the aim of lifting the trophy.

At the height of the eighth game in a very fast climb by Ruud before a drop shot by Alcaraz, the Norwegian managed to return and the referee awarded the point, but the native of Oslo, in a gesture of fair play, recognized that the ball gave two rebounds in the track, the judge rectifies and annuls the point and validates it in favor of Alcaraz, before which the stadium erupts in applause.

The duel would remain even until the seventh game in which the much more daring Spaniard in the climbs to the net in which he made colorful volleys achieved the long-awaited break to establish the 6-4.

For the second set, the Norwegian is not intimidated and rather accepts the challenge that Alcaraz plants him and comes out determined to show his face, he begins to show his powerful service and surprises the Spaniard who manages to maintain equality on several occasions … but in the end he would end up giving up . It would be at the height of the sixth game in which Ruud achieved his first break after exposing an Alcaraz who was losing precision and making mistakes, forced by the solid offensive of the Norwegian.

By the third set, the more than 23,000 attendees at the Arthur Ashe Stadium had already exceeded the limits of delirium. Both Alcaraz and Ruud were given standing ovations for the fantasy plays they were presenting. Although the Spaniard started as the broad favourite, already in the development of the match, they exhibited with plenty of merits that they were luxury finalists and that victory, whichever of the two they favored, the public would leave highly satisfied.

In this partial the best tennis of both contenders was seen. Ruud would begin by breaking Alcaraz’s service, but the Spaniard would equalize the score at 2-2, a parity that would be maintained after hard-fought exchanges until taking things to the tiebreak where the aggressive creativity of the Spaniard would make him dominate and win the game.

Encouraged by his rebound in the previous set, Alcaraz launches determined to take the duel, while Ruud is touched by not having managed to prevail in the third set where he had brilliant moments, but not enough to contain the Spanish barrage.

Aided by two backhand point winners, Alcaraz broke for 4-2 in the fourth set, then used two aces to climb to 5-2. After his 13th and 14th aces of the match set him on course for double championship point, a 125mph service winner secured victory.

Alcaraz had more personality and forcefulness and clearly confirmed that he had come to win. And the joy that he showed when he achieved it was left in the tears that he shed on the Ashe the very moment that the match was ruled in his favor.

Then he went to the corner where his father, his coach Juan Carlos Ferrero and his entire technical team were, all crying and shouting in unison: “we did it, we won, we won.”

While on the other hand, the entire stadium shouting: “Olé, olé olé, Carlos, Carlos”.

Alcaraz, seed number 3 in the US Open and 4 in the ATP ranking and who in 2021 reached the quarterfinals here, faced Ruud for the third time, seed number 5 in the US Open and 7 in the ATP ranking.

Alcaraz had also defeated the Oslo native on the two previous occasions, in 2021 at the ATP Challenger in Marbella 6-2, 6-4 and in 2022 at the ATP Master 1000 in Miami 7-5, 6-4.

With the first major title of her career, Alcaraz joins nine other Spanish women who have been individual Grand Slam champions: Manuel Santana, Andrés Gimeno, Manuel Orantes, Sergi Bruguera, Carlos Moyà, Albert Costa, Juan Carlos Ferrero and Rafael Nadal.