New York City in late August is basically a pressure cooker. It’s loud, it’s humid, and the lights at Arthur Ashe Stadium are bright enough to make anyone flinch. But for some reason, Carlos Alcaraz looks like he’s having a backyard hit-about when he steps onto that blue court.
Honestly, the relationship between the Spaniard and the Big Apple is weird. It’s a mix of total dominance and occasional, head-scratching collapses. Most people look at his 2022 title and his recent 2025 triumph and think he’s invincible there. But if you've really been watching, you know the story of Carlos Alcaraz at the US Open is a lot more chaotic than just a list of trophies.
It's a rollercoaster of "disconnections," as he calls them.
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Why Carlos Alcaraz at the US Open is a Different Beast
Let’s talk about that 2025 run for a second. Coming off a brutal 2024 where he got bounced in the second round by Botic van de Zandschulp (ranked 74th at the time—ouch), everyone was questioning his hard-court durability. Then he shows up in 2025, cuts his hair into a business-like buzzcut, and proceeds to not drop a single set until the final.
That’s insane.
He took down Reilly Opelka, dismantled Arthur Rinderknech, and then handled Jiri Lehecka like it was a practice session. By the time he faced Jannik Sinner in the final, the narrative had flipped. He wasn't just a clay court specialist who got lucky in New York once; he was the guy who could hold serve in 68 out of 69 games leading into a semi-final.
The 2025 Sinner Final: A Tactical Masterclass
In that final on September 7, 2025, Alcaraz beat Sinner 6-2, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4. It wasn't just about the power. It was the variety. He was hitting these "slingshot" forehands and a sidewinding overhead that literally skidded off the court. Sinner, who had been the king of hard courts for a year, looked completely overcooked.
- Serve Stats: Alcaraz won 84.5% of his service points in the opening set.
- The Ace: He sealed the match with his 11th ace of the day.
- The Celebration: He did a golf swing in honor of Sergio García. Kinda cool, right?
The "Van de Zandschulp" Scars
You can't talk about his New York success without mentioning the 2024 disaster. It was the most stunned I’ve ever seen a New York crowd. Alcaraz was coming off titles at Roland Garros and Wimbledon. He was on a 15-match winning streak. Then, Botic van de Zandschulp happened.
6-1, 7-5, 6-4.
Alcaraz looked perplexed. He admitted afterward he was "playing against himself" in his mind. This is the nuance people miss about him. When his focus slips, it doesn't just dip—it falls off a cliff. He goes from hitting "impossible" winners to making 18 unforced errors in a single set (like he did against Li Tu in the 2024 first round).
It’s this mental volatility that makes his US Open history so fascinating. He’s either the best player on the planet or a guy who doesn't know how to manage a basic baseline rally.
Career Record in Flushing Meadows
Look at his trajectory since his debut in 2021:
- 2021: Quarterfinals (as an 18-year-old!)
- 2022: Champion (youngest world No. 1 ever)
- 2023: Semifinals (lost to Medvedev)
- 2024: 2nd Round (the shocker)
- 2025: Champion (second title, regained No. 1 ranking)
What the Stats Actually Tell Us
People love to say he’s the next Nadal. Sure, the grit is there. But the stats suggest he's actually more of a hybrid. According to ATP data from early 2026, his hard-court win rate is sitting around 86%. That’s elite, but it’s the way he wins that matters.
He’s currently the only player in the 2020s to win multiple majors on all three surfaces—clay, grass, and hard. That puts him in a room with Djokovic, Nadal, and Mats Wilander. That's it. That's the list.
At 22, he’s already a six-time Grand Slam champion. To put that in perspective, at the same age, most of the "Big Three" were still figuring out how to handle the New York humidity.
Misconceptions About His Game
One of the biggest myths is that he wins on pure athleticism.
Watch the tape from the 2025 quarterfinal against Lehecka. It wasn't just speed; it was the "disruption" of rhythm. He uses the drop shot not just as a winner, but as a way to force opponents into uncomfortable positions at the net. He’s basically playing chess while everyone else is playing checkers.
Also, can we talk about the "disconnections"? He’s honest about them. He’ll be up 4-0 and suddenly lose four games in a row because he started "overthinking" the shot selection. He literally gets bored of hitting the easy ball and tries to do something spectacular.
Actionable Insights for Tennis Fans
If you’re trying to understand how to watch (or even bet on) Alcaraz at the US Open in the future, keep these things in mind:
- Watch the Serve: In 2025, his serve was his biggest weapon. If he’s winning 80%+ of his first-serve points, the match is basically over.
- Monitor the "Drop Shot" Frequency: If he’s hitting them into the net early, his timing is off. That’s usually a sign of a mental "disconnection" coming.
- Night Sessions Matter: He feeds off the New York crowd. He’s admitted the energy in Ashe makes him play better. A day match against a lower-ranked "junk baller" is actually more dangerous for him than a night match against a top-10 rival.
Now that the 2026 season is underway, the focus has shifted to whether he can complete the Career Grand Slam at the Australian Open. But New York remains his spiritual home. It’s where the "Carlos" phenomenon really started in 2022, and it’s where he proved his 2024 slump was just a glitch in the system.
To really track his progress, you should look at how he handles the transition from the Olympics and Cincinnati leading into the Open. His 11-match winning streak through Cincinnati and New York in 2025 showed that when he’s "on," nobody—not even Sinner or a late-career Djokovic—can really stay with him on a fast hard court.