Alcaraz had no complications to overcome his round of 16 match against Matteo Arnaldi, 6-3, 6-3 and 6-4. "It has been a solid match, with fewer errors," he said. "I am very satisfied with how I have played."
Arnaldi, 22, arrived at the event having the best year of his tennis life. 12 months ago, when he was ranked 187th, he was on the verge of entering the big draw, when he lost his last game of the qualifying round. In this edition he entered the US Open for the first time on his own merits, as number 61 in the world, and thanks to his performance on these tracks, he will climb to at least 47th place in the ranking at the end of the tournament. "If he's in the fourth round beating players like Norrie, he deserves to be there," Carlos Alcaraz had said of his opponent. “He is a very, very tough player. But obviously I know that it's going to be a very difficult match and that I have to demand a lot from myself."
Arthur Ashe's roof was closed, to keep out possible summer showers, and filtered a strange yellowish light. On the one hand, the humidity of the hottest day of the tournament to date would be avoided. But on the other hand, playing indoors is not the preference of Carlitos Alcaraz, who has always obtained his best results outdoors. Without underestimating any rival, despite the difference in classification, the number one came out with his left thigh bandaged and another bandage covering his right groin. He began to dominate with his right hand (“a shot that will be studied for many years,” John McEnroe commented). The Italian responded without being overwhelmed, risking some blunt shots while others missed his target. The Murcian, without too much stress, took the first set in 32 minutes.
And it was just warming up engines. The Wimbledon champion went even further in the second set, displaying his best shots: a backhand passing to break the first game, a dropshot and lob combination to strengthen the 2-0 lead, and then the same move to make it 3-1. and 4-2… He didn't give the San Remo player any options, who saw how Carlitos had answers even for his best shots. With another drop shot, on Arnaldi's third set point on serve, he finished the second set 41 minutes later.
It seemed that he had things under control, when in the third game of the third set, the Italian broke Alcaraz's service to white, who got his act together and restored equality in the next game, at 2-2. The public, eager to see more tennis, began to cheer on Arnaldi and celebrate his successes, and that seemed to give new life to the man from San Remo, who held out until the tenth game, when the Murcian broke to target and took the game.
With this victory Carlos Alcaraz became the first player to reach at least the quarterfinals in his first three appearances at the US Open. He was also the second man of the Open era to reach three Grand Slam quarterfinals under the age of 21, as Agassi did from 1988 to 1990.
Now comes the moment of truth for the man from El Palmar. If until eighth he had not had rivals of great height, here his luck ran out. His opponent in the quarterfinals will be the winner of the duel between Alexander Zverev and Jannik Sinner. He has history with both Carlitos. The German is one of the few players on the circuit who have a positive balance against the Murcian, with 3 wins out of 5 matches.
With his Italian nemesis, against whom he starred in an anthological duel in this same stadium in the quarterfinals last year, the face-to-face between them is tied at three, of their 6 clashes. The two games they have played in 2023 shared victories, for Sinner in Miami and for Alcaraz in Indian Wells.
In the women's draw, the elimination of Iga Swiatek at the hands of Jelena Ostapenko, who is the only player who has obtained four victories against the Pole, means that on Monday there will be a changing of the guard at the top of the ranking. Whatever Aryna Sabalenka does in the remainder of the tournament, the Belarusian will be the new world number one for the first time in her career.
