Even for a player as locked in as Carlos Alcaraz, the whirlwind of a Grand Slam draw can apparently get a little confusing.
After beating American Tommy Paul to secure his place in the quarterfinals, the Spanish tennis star appeared on ESPN and seemed momentarily unsure about which match would determine his next opponent.
During the post-match segment, Andy Roddick asked Alcaraz to assess the players he could face next: Stefanos Tsitsipas or Ben Shelton.
Alcaraz paused, then quickly realized he had been tracking the wrong section of the draw.
“Oh my god, I thought I was playing [Daniil] Medvedev-[Frances] Tiafoe,” Alcaraz said in surprise. “Thank you man.”
The whole situation created a good laugh among the panel on the ESPN set, situated just outside Arthur Ashe Stadium.
He did try to discuss the two tennis players, but Roddick’s laughter made it quite difficult to continue with the conversation.
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Finally, he was asked, “you’re going to watch the match tonight?”
“For sure I’m going to watch it,” he said while the laughter continued.
Shelton went on to win in straight sets over Tsitsipas to punch his ticket to the quarterfinals and a date with Alcaraz.
By the time he spoke with reporters, it seemed that Alcaraz had everything sorted out and had discussed the idea of playing his next opponent.
“If it is Shelton, really powerful player,” he said. “I think he use the crowd, the people behind him, especially when he’s playing here at home. I’m excited about playing the quarterfinal, either if it is against one or other. So I’ve got to be ready. I’m going to watch it, and I’ll be ready for that.”
Alcaraz is looking to repeat as U.S. Open champion after he defeated Jannik Sinner in the last year’s finals.
If he does repeat, he would be the first men’s player to do so in just under two decades.