“Lot of emotions I couldn’t control” – Alcaraz reflects on US Open shocker
Spaniard was defeated in straight sets by Botic van de Zandschulp in the second round on Thursday
Chryslene Caillaud / Panoramic
World No 3 Carlos Alcaraz met unforeseen fate at the 2024 US Open on Thursday as he suffered a 6-1, 7-5, 6-4 defeat to Botic van de Zandschulp, from the Netherlands, in the second round. The loss marked Alcaraz’s worst outing at the Grand Slam level since the 2021 Wimbledon Championships.
The Spaniard suffered six breaks of his serve at the hands of Zandschulp during the three setter, winning an underwhelming 52 percent (14/27) of his second serve points. Also, he failed to completely find his feet while receiving, averaging 25 percent (16/63) on first serve returns against his opponent’s 44 percent (19/43).
The New York crowd watched in disbelief as the 21-year-old struggled to play his natural game, missing his favorite dropshots and forehands on occasion, before he walked out with hands pressed to embrace the support.
“It was a fight against myself in my mind during the match,” Alcaraz, who committed 27 unforced errors, said during his post-match presser. “In tennis you are playing against someone that wants the same as you, to win the match, and you have to be as much calm as you can just to think better in the match and try to do good things.”
“Today I was playing against the opponent, and I was playing against myself, you know, in my mind. I mean, a lot of emotions that I couldn’t control.”
Carlos Alcaraz
Alcaraz: “I thought he was going to give me more free points”
For Botic van de Zandschulp, it was a historic outcome as he became the first player from the Netherlands to beat a Top-3 opponent at the New York Major since 1991, when Paul Haarhuis downed then world No 1 Boris Becker (6-3, 6-4, 6-2) in the third round.
Zandschulp hit a total of 22 winners, one more than hard-hitting Alcaraz, and registered an impressive average of 78 percent (49/63) in winning first serve points. The world No 74’s effort earned him praise from his opponent.
“He played really good tennis. I thought he was going to give me more points, I’m going to say, more free points. He didn’t make a lot of mistakes that I thought he was going to do. So I was, you know, confusing a little bit. I didn’t know how to manage that, how to deal with it.
“I couldn’t increase my level. I think my level stayed at the same point all the match, and it wasn’t enough to win the match or to give myself the chance to getting into the match or trying to give myself chances. I didn’t feel well hitting the ball. I think I made a lot of mistakes,” the 21-year-old Spaniard added.
Notably, Alcaraz reached the semifinals of the 2023 US Open, thus, he has lost 670 ranking points with the recent exit from the second round in Flushing Meadows.
