New York [US], August 28 : Carlos Alcaraz stormed into the second round of the US Open 2024 after recalibrating his approach against Australia's Li Tu in the opening round at the Arthur Ashe Stadium.
The young Spaniard extended his major match-winning streak to 15 with a 6-2, 4-6, 6-3, 6-1 triumph. With the win, Alcaraz is on the course of becoming just the third man in the Open Era to win Roland Garros, Wimbledon and the US Open in the same year.
The US Open 2022 champion raced to a 6-2 win within a blink of an eye, foreshadowing a quick wrap-up of the opening round.
However, in the second set, the dynamics of the game completely changed after the 22-year-old dropped three consecutive games. With the scoreline reading 4-5, Alcaraz lost a topsy-turvy 10-minute service game to Li Tu.
Alcaraz upped the ante after producing 18 unforced errors in the second set. He relied on his strong forehand game to dictate the flow of the play from the baseline.
He effortlessly switched from forehand to backhand to lure the Australian into making unforced errors.
He kept up the newly-found momentum that he gained in a contest that lasted for 2 hours and 42 minutes. He capped off an impressive display to clinch his 60th match win at Grand Slam level.
"First of all, I'm really happy to get through and [have] a chance to be better in the next round. Obviously, I felt well on the court. I think I hit the ball well. I moved well. [There are] a few things that I have to improve if I want to keep going in the draw, but obviously, I have to give credit to him as well. He played really good tennis and surprised me a little bit in the second set. I leave the court happy with my performance," Alcaraz said in his post-match press conference, as quoted from ATP.com.
While assessing his performance in the second set, Alcaraz said, "The first set, I made just two unforced errors. In the second set, I made 18. That was the huge difference for me."
"He started to play better, obviously serving better, playing more aggressively, and not making a lot of mistakes that he did in the first set. But talking about myself, it was from two to 18 unforced errors, a huge difference for me," he added.
Alcaraz's next opponent will be Botic van de Zandschulp, who defeated Denis Shapovalov 6-4, 7-5, 6-4 to seal his place in the next round.
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