Carlos Alcaraz stunned by Botic Van De Zandschulp at US Open
NEW YORK -- |A|
Carlos Alcarazs 15-match Grand |B|
Slam unbeaten run ended |C|
at the US Open |D|
with a sloppy 6-1, |E|
7-5, 6-4 loss to |F|
74th-ranked Botic Van De |G|
Zandschulp in the second |H|
round on Thursday night, |J|
a stunning result that |K|
eliminated the pre-tournament favorite. |L|
Alcaraz won the |S| French Open in June |U| and Wimbledon in July |V| to raise his career |Y| total to four major |Z| championships, including taking the |A| title at Flushing Meadows |B| in 2022. According to |C| ESPN BET, he entered |D| the US Open as |E| the betting favorite at |F| +190.
But he never |G| found his footing against |H| Van De Zandschulp, a |J| 28-year-old from the Netherlands. |K| Alcaraz was way off, |L| repeatedly missing the sorts |M| of shots he usually |O| makes routinely. After double-faulting |P| to fall behind two |Q| sets to none -- |R| a deficit he has |S| never overcome -- the |U| No. 3-seeded Alcaraz slung |V| his equipment bag over |Y| this shoulder and trudged |Z| toward the locker room.
|A| dir="ltr">Glancing in the direction |B| of his coach, 2003 |C| French Open champion Juan |D| Carlos Ferrero, Alcaraz pointed |E| his right index finger |F| at his temple, then |G| wagged that finger, as |H| if to say, "Im |J| not thinking straight."
He |K| might have been excused |L| for being confused by |M| what was transpiring under |O| the closed retractable roof |P| at Arthur Ashe Stadium |Q| on a chilly evening.
|R| dir="ltr">The 21-year-old from Spain |S| came in with a |U| 16-2 record at the |V| US Open, where he |Y| never lost before the |Z| quarterfinals in three previous |A| appearances. This also was |B| Alcarazs earliest defeat at |C| any major tournament since |D| bowing out in the |E| second round of Wimbledon |F| in 2021 as a |G| teenager; he has never |H| lost in the first |J| round at a Slam |K| event.
In contrast, Van |L| De Zandschulp only once |M| has been to a |O| Grand Slam quarterfinal, getting |P| that far at the |Q| US Open in 2021.
|R| dir="ltr">Otherwise, though, he is |S| not someone most folks |U| would have expected to |V| pull of this sort |Y| of monumental upset. Consider: |Z| Van De Zandschulp was |A| just 11-18 for the |B| season at the start |C| of this week and |D| hadnt won consecutive matches |E| at a tour-level event |F| in 2024.
"Actually, I |G| am a little bit |H| at a loss for |J| words," he said. "Its |K| been an incredible evening |L| for me."
Sure was.
|M| dir="ltr">The key stat probably |O| was that Van De |P| Zandschulp won the point |Q| on 28 of his |R| 35 trips to the |S| net.
The opening set |U| was lopsided. With Van |V| De Zandschulps powerful forehands |Y| and serves at up |Z| to 132 mph finding |A| their marks, Alcaraz never |B| seemed to get comfortable, |C| even if he had |D| won their past two |E| matchups.
Alcaraz did not |F| produce a single winner |G| in that set and |H| was nearly doubled up |J| in total points, 24-13. |K| The second set was |L| a bit better for |M| him, but not enough |O| so, and a double-fault |P| gift-wrapped a service break |Q| that put Van De |R| Zandschulp up 6-5. When |S| Alcaraz pushed a forehand |U| wide to end the |V| next game, Van De |Y| Zandschulp finished off a |Z| hold at love that |A| gave him the initial |B| two sets after 1 |C| 1/2 hours of action.
|D| dir="ltr">Didnt take long for |E| Alcaraz to fall behind |F| by a break in |G| the third, too, at |H| 3-2, but he made |J| a stand immediately - |K| well, with some help, |L| because Van De Zandschulps |M| double-fault ceded a break |O| that made it 3-all. |P| Alcaraz then held at |Q| love and smiled as |R| he strutted to the |S| changeover.
That grin quickly |U| was gone, though, because |V| Alcarazs mistakes kept arriving, |Y| and Van De Zandschulp |Z| never folded.
"Of course |A| I had some nerves, |B| but I think if |C| you want to beat |D| one of these guys, |E| you have to keep |F| your calm and keep |G| your head there," said |H| Van De Zandschulp, who |J| will face No. 25 |K| seed Jack Draper of |L| Britain in the third |M| round on Saturday. "Otherwise, |O| they take advantage of |P| it."
Alcaraz is the |Q| first top-three mens seed |R| to lose within the |S| first two rounds at |U| the US Open since |V| 2006, when No. 3-seeded |Y| Ivan Ljubicic lost in |Z| the first round to |A| Feliciano López.
Alcaraz had |B| entered the night 25-1 |C| in majors against players |D| ranked outside the top |E| 50, with the lone |F| loss coming against No. |G| 95 Mikael Ymer in |H| the second round of |J| the 2021 Australian Open.
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