Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz (Reuters/Mike Frey Photo)
On Monday, Alcaraz, whose long, flowy locks, held back by a thin black headband, have already attracted plenty of wows from the fandom, opens against Roman Safiullin, the 29-year-old who lit up Wimbledon with his fight last month. The two most recent Masters 1000 champions, Ben Shelton and Arthur Fils, are potential quarter final opponents for second-seeded Alcaraz, who has 24-time major winner Novak Djokovic in his half. So I just have to go 100%, and stay away from that fear. If anything, the last few months have underlined just how much Alcaraz, Sinner and the 39-year-old Djokovic matter to the men’s game.
“I’m feeling great,” Alcaraz told international media at his pre-championship conference. “My team and I believe that I’m ready,” he added. The Russian also defeated Alcaraz in straight sets at the Paris Masters three years ago. “I think that right now it’s (injury) is all in my head. I gotta trust my team, I gotta trust my people that tell me it’s gonna be fine. “It wasn’t an easy decision. I did whatever it took to be ready. I tried to do everything perfect on and off the court, really long practices, intense practices, just to see how my wrist is going to react. Even though Alcaraz enters the US Open after a four-month injury break and without a prior hard-court singles match, the second seed is hardly short of expectations. They are the sport’s biggest stars, the ones who put bums on seats. At Roland Garros in May-June, with Alcaraz out of tournament play and Sinner’s challenge wilting in the heat, Zverev’s title run became an uncomfortable one for the sport. The German’s two separate sets of domestic abuse allegations reshaped the way he has been covered in parts of the media.
Daniil Medvedev, the 30-year-old world No. 8, argued that if Alcaraz is at Flushing Meadows, it means he and his team are confident that the wrist has sufficiently recovered.
“I don’t think the wrist is going to be a problem,” he said. “It’s more for the whole body itself. If he has a tough match, it could be interesting to see how he copes. It’s really nice for me to see him here to play. If I have a chance, I’m going to watch his match, he’s playing my friend Roman.”