Carlos Alcaraz on Wednesday stormed into the third round of the US Open with a blistering straight-sets victory, while Novak Djokovic overcame an early scare to advance.
Alcaraz, who could meet Djokovic in the semi-finals at Flushing Meadows if the draw follows the seedings, blew away Italy’s Mattia Bellucci 6-1, 6-0, 6-3 in just 1 hour, 36 minutes on the Arthur Ashe Stadium main court.
The 22-year-old Spanish second seed unfurled a stream of 32 winners in a dominant display against world No. 65 Bellucci, whose best performance in a Grand Slam came with a run to the third round at Wimbledon earlier this year.
Photo: EPA
“I played great to be honest, from the beginning until the last ball,” said Alcaraz, who is to face another Italian, 32nd seed Luciano Darderi, in the next round.
“The less time I spend on court the better for me, to go to bed early,” he said.
Serbian legend Djokovic kept his dream of a record 25th Grand Slam singles title alive after a four-set defeat of qualifier Zachary Svajda of the US.
Djokovic though was forced to dig deep after losing the first set before claiming a 6-7 (5/7), 6-3, 6-3, 6-1 win.
Djokovic, 38, said that while not at his best, he is hoping to play himself into form as the tournament progresses.
“That’s what I’m hoping, the deeper I go into the tournament, the better I feel about my game,” he said.
Djokovic’s victory sees him into the third round at the US Open for a record-equaling 19th time, where he is to face Britain’s Cameron Norrie, who defeated Argentina’s Francisco Comesana 7-6 (7/5), 6-3, 6-7 (0/7), 7-6 (7/4).
Norwegian 12th seed Casper Ruud, the 2022 US Open finalist, exited to Belgium’s Raphael Collignon, losing 6-4, 3-6, 3-6, 6-4, 7-5.
Fourth seed Taylor Fritz advanced safely, beating South Africa’s Lloyd Harris 4-6, 7-6 (7/3), 6-2, 6-4, while his compatriot Frances Tiafoe, seeded 17, also progressed with a four-set defeat of qualifier Martin Damm. Tiafoe won 6-4, 7-5, 6-7 (8/10), 7-5.
In the women’s singles, defending champion and world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka advanced to the next round after dispatching unseeded Russian Polina Kudermetova 7-6 (7/4), 6-2.
Sabalenka started slowly, but after taking the first set on a tiebreak, asserted her control to pull away in the second. The Belarusian is to play Canada’s Leylah Fernandez in the third round.
“The first set was super tight, super aggressive. I was glad I was able to handle that pressure and put it back to her. In the second set I felt much better in the return game,” she said.
Latvian 25th seed Jelena Ostapenko was upset 7-5, 6-1 by Taylor Townsend before unleashing a furious on-court tirade at the American.
Townsend said Ostapenko accused her of lacking “class” during her rant.
“She told me I have no education, no class, and to see what happens if we play each other outside of the US,” Townsend said. “It was unfortunate, but, you know, it’s something I can put on my Tiktok.”
Ostapenko on Instagram said that she had been angered by Townsend’s failure to acknowledge a net cord in her favor during the match.
Britain’s Emma Raducanu continued her solid start to the tournament after dispatching Indonesian qualifier Janice Tjen in straight sets, winning 6-2, 6-1.
Raducanu is to face ninth seed Elena Rybakina in the next round.
While Tjen headed for the exit, another player from Southeast Asia, Alexandra Eala of the Philippines, also saw her tournament come to an end.
Eala, the first player from the Philippines to win a Grand Slam singles match with her defeat of 14th seed Clara Tauson on Sunday, was beaten 6-4, 6-3 by Spain’s Cristina Bucsa.
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