By David Ramirez
Aug 30, 2024, 06:19 AM EDT
Incredible but true, Carlos Alcaraz was eliminated this Thursday in the second round of the US Open by Botic van de Zandschulp by 6-1, 7-5 and 6-4.
The Dutch world number 74 pulled off a surprise in the Arthur Ashe Stadium with great ease, while Italy’s Jannik Sinner and Poland’s Iga Swiatek comfortably advanced to the third round.
Sinner easily defeated American Alex Michelsen 6-4, 6-0, 6-2. The Italian will play Australian Chris O’Connell in the third round.
Swiatek defeated Japan’s Ena Shibahara 6-0, 6-1. She will now face Russia’s Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova.
The unexpected defeat
The crowd saw an unrecognisable Alcaraz, who had already been crowned champion of the French Open and Wimbledon, be beaten by Van de Zandschulp, who is making his own history at Flushing Meadows, becoming the first player from his country to beat a player in the top three at a Grand Slam tournament since Richard Krajicek beat Pete Sampras in the quarterfinals of Wimbledon in 1996.
The Spaniard, who won the US Open as a teenager in 2022, had advanced to at least the quarterfinal stage every year since his debut in 2021. In 2023, he reached the semifinals as the No. 1 seed at age 20, the youngest seed in tournament history.
“It was a fight against myself, you know, in my mind during the match. In tennis you play against someone who wants the same thing as you. Today I was playing against the opponent, and I was playing against myself,” said third-seeded Alcaraz, who was expected to advance on her 15-match Grand Slam match winning streak.
Alcaraz added that she experienced feelings of “confusion” as well as “a lot of emotions that I couldn’t control. I have to think about it. I have to learn about it.”
The Dutchman was the protagonist from the start of the match, imposing his conditions and adding points without ever giving Alcaraz a chance to find his game, and instead looking disconcerted at all times.
“I think I played emotionally stable tonight. Also, during my game I think I played incredibly stable,” the Dutchman said in the post-match press conference.
Van de Zandschulp, born in Wageningen and 28, will face Briton Jack Draper in the third round, the winner of Argentine Facundo Díaz Acosta, in what will also be the first meeting between the two.