Spaniard Carlos Alcalás took the tennis world by storm by defeating Norway’s Kasparud at the US Open summit on Sunday. The 19-year-old Spaniard defeated Luther 6-4, 2-6, 7-6 (7-1), 6-3 in a four-set duel at New York’s sold-out Arthur Ashe Stadium. With this victory, Alcalás wrote his name in golden letters in tennis history, becoming the youngest tennis world number one.
“Well, it’s something I’ve been dreaming about since I was a kid. It’s something I’ve worked very, very hard on. It’s hard to talk about now. A lot of emotions,” Alcaraz said after the game.
Alcaraz is considered the next big thing in tennis. He broke multiple records on the way to his first major. The teenager is also the youngest Grand Slam champion since Rafael Nadal won the French Open at 19 in 2005, a feat since Pete Sampras was 19 in Flushing Meadows. Youngest champion ever. the year 1990.
“You have to give everything on the tennis court. You have to give everything in your heart. I worked very, very hard to achieve this feat,” Alcaraz said. “This is not the time to be tired,” the Spaniard added.
Alcaraz also now holds the record for most time spent on the tennis court in a major Grand Slam singles match. He surpassed Kevin Anderson’s 23 hours and 21 minutes to win Anderson runner-up at Wimbledon in 2018. Alcaraz played 23 hours and 39 minutes on Flushing Meadows.
When we talk about the game, we see high emotions, cheers from the crowd behind the players and tennis of the highest quality. This game is a tough game. Alcalás won the first set with 13 winners, while Luther had six. He broke the Norwegian’s serve in this set to start on a high note. But Luther excelled in the second set, breaking the 19-year-old twice to get to the top again.
The third set, a wonderful head-to-head confrontation. Alcalás took the lead to lead 2-0 before Luther tied 2-2. Both players gave their all, and Luther had a chance to lead the game as he had two sets in the third set. But it was well negotiated by the Spaniards to force the set into a tiebreaker and decide the winner.
In the fourth set, Alcalás again showed a strong move to lead 5-3 after a break in the sixth game, but Alcalás’ powerful ace helped him secure a 5-3 lead at Flushing Meadows before Luther reversed again. victory.