Carlos Alcaraz’s US Open was never meant to end this way: not so early, not with so little opposition.
But Dutchman Botic van de Zandschulp was unaware of that scenario, as he defeated the Spanish prodigy in the second round on Wednesday with a convincing 6-1, 7-5, 6-4 victory.
Alcaraz, the winner of Roland Garros and Wimbledon this year, didn’t really get going here in Arthur Ashe because his opponent made the court too long. But sometimes that was also due to his own decision-making.
The Spanish superstar committed 27 unforced errors and his tournament ended much earlier than expected. One poorly chosen drop shot ended up in the net (15-30) and the third set was still tied (2-2) during his service (after which he was broken). This is a striking symbol for his disappointing evening.
Nick Kyrgios advised Alcaraz to show less showmanship before the match, and maybe he was right.
The Spaniard at one point turned a deuce on the crowd in the third set, and was of course 2-1 down and losing the game immediately, before Van de Zandschulp got a surprise break, forcing him to serve out the match.
More to come