Carlos Alcaraz is a Grand Slam champion at age 19 after rolling to a 6-4, 2-6, 7-6 (1), 6-3 victory over fifth-seeded Casper Ruud in the U.S. Open final on Sunday at New York.
Alcaraz, who delivered 14 aces, also ascended to No. 1 in the world rankings and became the youngest to win a Grand Slam since fellow Spaniard Rafael Nadal (also 19) in 2005.
The third-seeded Alcaraz, at 19 years, 130 days, became the youngest player ever to be ranked No. 1. The old mark was held by Australia’s Lleyton Hewitt, who rose to the top at 20 years, 268 days in 2001 during his Hall of Fame career.
Alcaraz had eight of his aces in the final set. He had 55 winners against 41 unforced errors while winning his fifth title of the year.
Alcaraz earned $2.6 million for winning in his first Grand Slam final. He is the youngest to win the U.S. Open since legendary Pete Sampras (also 19) won in 1990.
“It is something I have dreamt of since I was a kid,” Alcaraz said during the trophy presentation. “To be No. 1 in the world, to be champion of a Grand Slam, is something I’ve worked really, really hard for. It is tough to talk right now, I have lots of emotions.
“It is something that is really special for me.”
Ruud, 23, had never been in a major final before losing to Rafael Nadal for the French Open title in June. He had 37 winners and 29 unforced errors on Sunday and rose to a career-best No. 2 in the world rankings.
“I’m disappointed that I’m not No. 1 but No. 2 is not too bad either,” Ruud said. “I am happy with that number and I will continue to chase for my first Grand Slam title and No. 1 ranking.”
Ruud is the first Norwegian to play in the U.S. Open title match.
Alcaraz broke Ruud’s service when the latter hit long to take a 4-2 lead in the fourth set. Alcaraz won the next game to close in on the prize.
But Ruud pitched a shutout in the eighth game to make it 5-3, giving Alcaraz the opportunity to serve for the title. He won the first two points before hitting an open slam into the net.
Alcaraz bounced back with an ace but hit a ball long on his first match point. Then he wound up and hit a scorching serve that Ruud couldn’t handle to close out the match.
Alcaraz’s path to the title included lengthy matches with Croatia’s Marin Cilic in the fourth round, Italy’s Jannik Sinner in a classic quarterfinal battle and American Frances Tiafoe in the semifinals.
Each time, he was able to recharge and come back strong in his next match.
“I always say there’s no time to be tired in the final round of a Grand Slam or even in every tournament,” Alcaraz said. “You have to give everything you have inside. That is something I work very hard on.”
Alcaraz won the opening set, but Ruud stepped up with a strong second set, including winning the final four games. Ruud made just five errors in the second set while Alcaraz committed 10.
Ruud held 5-4 and 6-5 leads in the third set but couldn’t close it out. Alcaraz saved two set points before winning the 12th game and forcing a tiebreaker. He then dominated the tiebreaker, winning 7-1 to take a 2-1 lead.
–Field Level Media
