Carlos Alcaraz moved on to the US Open semifinals after defeating Jannik Sinner. Photo: Corey Sipkin / AFP.
With few luxuries and a lot of sweat, the Spaniards Carlos Alcaraz (4th) made an epic comeback early Thursday morning and beat Italian Jannik Sinner (13th) 6-3, 6-7 (7), 6-7 (0), 7-5, 6-3 , in a US Open quarter-final marathon showdown that lasted for five hours.
The 19-year-old from Murcia is not only looking for his first Grand Slam, but also number one in the ATP rankings and last Grand Slam of the season, and with compatriot Rafael Nada, who fell in the round of 16, Alcaraz will become the youngest player to reach the first position in world tennis.
The match against Sinner had it all: not just his own effort 5 hours and 15 minutes game, but also luxuries that could very well constitute the podium of the best points of the entire race that takes place in Flushing Meadows.
Among the most colorful comings and goings, just to name a few, stands out a return of Alcaraz who has improvised by passing the racket over his shoulder. Then, he called a cross to win the point and, consequently, the applause of all the spectators present at Arthur Ashe Stadium.
To keep alive their illusion of obtaining the privileged place in the ranking that until this tournament belonged to Daniil Medvedev, Alcaraz will have to eliminate in the semifinals the 24-year-old American Frances Tifoe (26th), who arrives at that moment after eliminating the L Argentinian Diego Schwartzman in the third round, Spaniard Rafael Nadal in the round of 16 and Russian Andrey Rublev in the quarter-finals.
Carlos Alcaraz, in search of the number one
After the defeat of Daniil Medvedev, Only Rafael Nadal, Casper Ruud and Carlos Alcaraz remain in the fight for the number one in the world rankings. The Spanish expert was the only one who depended on himself. It was enough for him to reach the final to secure the first step of the ladder. But the loss of him to Tiafoe changed the landscape. Now he will have to see how far his two rivals go in that race.
The scenario is simple. If only one of the two – Alcaraz or Ruud – reaches the final, the one who arrives will be the new number one. If the two reach the decisive point, whoever wins the title will climb to the top.
If none of them are a finalist, the number one will go to the now number three, Nadal, for the first time since January 2020. And the Majorcan will become the second longest in history to join him after the Swiss Roger Federer, who did it at June 2020 at 36 years, 10 months and 16 days.
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Source: Clarin
