A packed stadium witnessed a spectacular clash of generations in Arthur Ashe Stadium, where former champion Carlos Alcaraz claimed a 6-4, 7-6(4), 6-2 victory over 24-time major winner Novak Djokovic, the No. 60 at tour level this season, on Friday afternoon.
“It is a great feeling to be in the final again,” said the Spaniard, in his on-court interview.
“It was not the best level today, but I kept a good level from the start to the last point,” he added. “I served pretty well, which was important today. I tried to play a physical match, and I think I did it.”
“In general, I played great tennis and I am happy to be in my second final at the US Open.”
Throughout a two-hour, 23-minute semifinal contest, the former US Open champions battled hard for a place in Sunday’s final; neither man managed to display their best tennis, but the highly anticipated clash did not disappoint.
Alcaraz, 16 years Djokovic junior, succeeded in executing his game plan throughout a physical three-setter.
The first two sets were explosive and intense, with the Serbian hitting the court ready to run the extra mile, wearing his heart on his sleeve.
In the third, the fact of being two sets down and the wear on the body made the difference for the Olympic gold medalist, who received a round of applause as he left the court.
There were moments of brilliance in extended baseline exchanges, adding pressure on the world No. 2, who committed more mistakes than usual, hitting 13 unforced errors to his rival’s 11.
However, the 22-year-old compensated for his initial inconsistency with a solid performance on serve while Djokovic struggled on the backhand side.
Without facing a break point all set, the Murcia native closed out 6-4 when his adversary missed a forehand.
The seventh seed came out firing in the second set, powering through his opponent by breaking early and holding to love, extending his advantage to 3-0.
Despite hitting seven unforced errors in three games, Alcaraz found his way back into the set, prevailing in a lengthy rally to get on the board 1-3.
Then, he capitalized on his chances, as the 38-year-old committed an error on the backhand, breaking to narrow the gap at 2-3.
Back on track, he leveled up 3-3, and from there, a roller-coaster began to unfold.
They went toe-to-toe, producing some ferocious ball striking from both ends of the net.
Djokovic lit up the crowd in Ashe, withstanding the pressure in a monumental 27-shot rally he won after the five-time Slam winner hit a forehand that clipped the net.
And in the blink of an eye, a brutal second set led into a tiebreak that the second seed took 7-5(4), an inflection point in the contest.
The physio treated the Belgrade-born at the end of that set and once again during a changeover in the third, massaging his neck and right shoulder, giving signs his body was saying no to an uphill battle.
Alcaraz took control of the third set, storming to a 6-2 win.
During his post-match press conference, Djokovic shared, “Unfortunately, I ran out of gas after the second set. I had enough energy to battle him and to keep up with his rhythm for two sets. After that, I was gassed out, and he kept going.”
When asked about the future and his level in majors, he added, “I’m happy with my level of tennis, but it’s just the physicality of it. As I said after the quarterfinals, I’m going to do my very best to get my body in shape to sustain that level and that rhythm for as many hours as it’s needed, but it wasn’t enough.
“That’s something I, unfortunately, at this point in my career, can’t control.”
All in all, Alcaraz hit 31 winners against 30 unforced errors, converted four of seven break points, and won 84 percent of first serve points and 54 percent on his second delivery.
Making his fifth main draw appearance in New York, the player coached by Juan Carlos Ferrero has progressed to his third straight Grand Slam final, his 30th on tour off the back of a near flawless campaign.
Alcaraz and Jannik Sinne seem to be out of reach, not just for the 100-time ATP titlist, but to the rest of the field as well, regardless of age.
At the time of writing, the Italian was playing his semifinal match against Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime.