Carlos Alcaraz won his first US Open in the men’s singles tournament final. The 19-year-old athlete secured his first Grand Slam title and became the No. 1 ranked player on the ATP Tour after defeating Norway’s Casper Ruud 6-4, 2-6, 7-6 (1), 6-3 at Arthur Ashe Stadium.
The Spaniard tennis star began the year ranking in the position No. 32 in the world but quickly made his way to the top thanks to his performance on the court. “Everything came so fast. For me, it’s unbelievable. It’s something I dreamed of since I was a kid since I started playing tennis,” Alcaraz said, according to AP. “Of course, I’m hungry for more,” he added to reporters.
© GettyImages“[This is] something I’ve dreamed of since I was a kid — to be number one in the world and champion of a Grand Slam is something I’ve worked really hard for,” Alcaraz assured.
After competing and winning against Italy’s Jannik Sinner in a tournament that lasted five hours and 15 minutes, the current world’s new No. 1 told ESPN he was “a little bit” tired, “but there’s no time to be tired in the final run of a Grand Slam — you have to give everything on the court and everything you have inside. It’s something I’ve worked hard for.”
As a Grand Slammer, Alcaraz is the first male teenager to win the US Open since Pete Sampras in 1990 and the first teen to win a Grand Slam since Rafael Nadal.
“I want to be (at) the top for many, many weeks — I hope many years,” Alcaraz said. “I’m going to work hard again after this week, these amazing two weeks. I’m going to fight (to) have more of this.”
