“I'm not mentally strong enough”: shock at the US Open, Carlos Alcaraz eliminated in the second round

Carlos Alcaraz is already out the door. MAXPPP – JOHN ANGELILLO

Thunderclap on the gigantic Arthur-Ashe court where the Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz, winner of the tournament in 2022, was dispatched by the Dutchman Botic van de Zandschulp (74th) 6-1, 7-5, 6-4, in the second round of the US Open tennis tournament, Thursday August 30 in New York.

In his black tank top, Carlos Alcaraz seemed lost, for once, on the small blue rectangle with white lines in the heart of Arthur-Ashe stadium and its nearly 24,000 spectators who were still as dissipated as ever.

A young face in world tennis, the Spaniard, already four times a Major champion at just 21 years old, had not suffered a defeat at this stage of the Grand Slam competition since July 2021, at Wimbledon, for his first year on the circuit.

Under the worried gaze of his coach Juan-Carlos Ferrero, “Carlitos” never found the solution against van de Zandschulp, who had an answer to all his variations &ndash short game, long game, without being able to develop his usual power.

"It wasn't enough to win or give me a chance to come back"

“He played very well. I expected him to give me more free points. That bothered me. I didn't know how to raise my level. I stayed at the same level throughout the match, it wasn't enough to win or give me a chance to come back”, commented the Spaniard.

In the first set, Alcaraz didn't hit any winning shots. In total, he only converted two break points (out of five), poor numbers for the young Murcian, former world No. 1.

Winner of Roland-Garros and Wimbledon this year, Alcaraz pointed out that he was not invincible, as he still has a few slumps, such as his defeat in his first match in Cincinnati against Frenchman Gaël Monfils in mid-August. "On this tour, I am not mentally strong enough, I have not been able to respond to certain problems", he noted.

It goes through for Sinner

His defeat opens up a whole section of the table, where the Briton Jack Draper (25th), van de Zandschulp's future opponent, is now the best ranked among the eight players who can claim a semi-final. Italian Jannik Sinner, on the other hand, had a stroll in his second round, swallowed in 1h39 by American Alex Michelsen (49th) 6-4, 6-0, 6-2.

“I had beaten him in Cincinnatii (just before the US Open) so I knew what to expect”, he briefly commented before leaving the Arthur-Ashe court. The world No. 1 is moving forward and continuing to digest his busy pre-tournament news, with the revelation of his whitewashing by anti-doping after two positive tests in March, a case that caused controversy.

“I think that the period made me grow, regardless of how things went, which could help me in the future […]. It lets me know who my real friends are", he said while several players denounced the opacity of the process and the feeling of a two-tier justice system. Sinner (23 years old), who has never gone beyond the quarter-finals in New York, will face Australian Christopher O’Connell (87th) on Saturday in an attempt to reach the round of 16.

More French people in New York

There are no French players left in the men's draw after the defeats of Arthur Fils and Adrian Mannarino on Thursday in the second round of the US Open tennis tournament, where Jessika Ponchet took advantage of Elena Rybakina's withdrawal to reach the third round.

France had 14 players in the men's singles tournament (the second most represented country behind the United States, with 17 players), and all have now been eliminated in two rounds. “It's really bad and it leaves us almost speechless this assessment. “It's hard to understand, to analyze”, Arthur Fils conceded.

The young player (20 years old), seeded (24th in the world), and a great promise of French tennis, reached the 8th finals at Wimbledon in July. In New York, he saw his ambitions crash against an almost unknown Canadian, Gabriel Diallo (143rd), winner 7-5, [3] 6-7, 6-4, 6-4.

Mannarino without solution

In the first round, Mannarino had ended a series of ten defeats this summer, but was unable to follow up against the Belgian David Goffin, for a loss [8] 6-7, 6-3, 6-2, 7-6 [1].

“Over the whole match I really didn't serve very well. Against a player like that who plays very well in the exchange, with whom it lasts, it lasts, it lasts, I have to manage to get more free points on my serve”, indicated the veteran (36 years old) in a press conference.