Carlos Alcaraz had a rare stumble against a younger opponent Wednesday night on Arthur Ashe Stadium, losing only the third set of his career in that category.
The defending U.S. Open champion quickly steadied himself, turning the match around with authority to beat Portugal’s Jaime Faria 4-6, 6-0, 6-3, 6-2 and book a place in the third round at Flushing Meadows for the fifth time in six tournament appearances.
Alcaraz and Faria are both 23, but Faria is exactly three months younger than the Spanish star.
That distinction matters because Alcaraz has built a flawless ATP Tour record against players born after him, a mark he extended to 14-0 with Wednesday’s comeback victory.
Next up for Alcaraz is a Friday third-round meeting with China’s Wu Yibing.
“Well, I wanted it to be quick, to be honest,” Alcaraz said when asked if he preferred the extra work or would rather the match finish quickly. “But, you know, at the end, I realized that playing four sets was really good for me. Test everything physically, to test my body.
“How I feel, and tomorrow how I’m going to feel after this match after four sets. I’m just happy that I was able to play good tennis during the fourth set.”
The win was Alcaraz’s 16th consecutive in Grand Slam tournaments and his ninth straight at the U.S. Open.
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Alcaraz unleashed a bow-and-arrow celebration as the fans rose to their feet with applause.
And after a rough start, it was warranted. Because for the first time since returning from his 4 ½-month hiatus with a wrist injury, Alcaraz looked a little rusty in the first set.
“I know once I step on the court, I just got to go for it every time,” said Alcaraz, who finished the match with 43 winners. “I got to feel normal. I have to, you know, hit like I was hitting before the injury, and let’s see what happens, you know, after that. You know, I’m just feeling great. There is no reason to be afraid and not hitting normal.”
Struggling mightily on his first serve during the first set, Alcaraz converted just over 50 percent.
Not only were his groundstrokes all over the place, but Alcaraz wasn’t even effectively hitting his trademark drop shot.
But over the next two sets, Alcaraz lost just three total games, including a bagel in the second.
“I had a break point [in the first set], I didn’t make it. And after that, I just wanted to play short points, which was a mistake for me,” he said. “I just needed to play [with] passion, to play long rallies, three, four, five shots, and then go for it. But I kind of built the point from the first shots. I didn’t make it. So I would say that’s why he got the break and got the first set.
“After that, I realized what I had to do. I needed to be more [passionate], to build the points a little bit more since the beginning. Yeah, I got an early break, which helped me a lot to play with more calm, and then I’m thinking more [clearly] about everything I would say that was the turning point.”