Carlos Alcaraz made his US Open debut with success. The Murcian defeated Australian Li Tu 6-2, 4-6, 6-3 and 6-1 in a match where she started off overwhelming but got complicated midway through the second set.
After the match, the Roland Garros and Wimbledon champion faced another Australian: Nick Kyrgios. Until recently, his partner was in charge of doing courtside interviews after the game, and many expected to know what this face-to-face would be like after the Sinner case.
And it was that Kyrgios has been the most critical of the Italian, who asked for a two-year ban after testing positive for clostebol. in Indian Wells, while Alcaraz defended his friend, highlighting that if he was not sanctioned it was because he was innocent.
Well, the topic did not come up in the interview. Kyrgios He chose to give a very personal touch to the interview and He asked Alcaraz about his clothes.
“I love it when you wear a tank top. Did you design them yourself? Because your arms look sensational” he asked.
“I like to play sleeveless. In some tournaments I like to play with a sleeveless shirt likely to intimidate rivals” replied Alcaraz between laughs.
And things didn’t work out. After reviewing their impressions of the match, Alcaraz and Kyrgios bid a cordial farewell.
Already in the press room, Alcaraz appreciated the fact of achieving his 60th ‘grand slam’ victory, a mark that leaves him only behind John McEnroe as the player who needs the fewest games to reach that figure in the ‘open season’ (69 for the American, 70 for the Spaniard).
“This is a great statistic. The truth is I don’t know, I haven’t seen it. That’s what we do every day: to try to be betterwin matches, give ourselves a chance to reach the final rounds in every tournament and especially the ‘grand slam’. It’s a shame that McEnroe lost a match to me…” he joked at a press conference.
“But for me it is an honor to share these statistics with great legends of the sport. There are 60, now we want to go for 70, then for 80… And thus try to reach the highest possible success in the ‘grand slam’,” he added.
After dropping the second set and being stuck in thick stretches of his tennis, the Roland Garros and Wimbledon champion knew how to react and now has a 15 grand slam winning streak.
“This is something that I have said many times that I need to improve: the issue of disconnections“, he admitted about his mistakes in the second set after starting the match “very focused and focused.”
“I made a lot of mistakes that I shouldn’t have. From two unforced errors in the first set to 18 in the second. Big change and eventually the second set got away from me. These are the things I need to improve (…). But overall, I’m happy with the level, the way I hit the ball, the way I move: with good feelings except for the little things left,” he said.
The Murcian will face Dutchman Botic van De Zandschulp (n.74) in the next round.who defeated the Canadian Denis Shapovalov (n.105) and he lost in his two previous matches (the 2021 Australian Open and Basel 2022).
“I know he is a very dangerous player, his shots are good. He was in a good moment, Maybe this past year or these past few months he hasn’t been playing his best tennis. The results were clear,” he explained.
“But if he beats Shapovalov it will be because his level is high, anything is possible. We have to focus on every point, try to improve what we did wrong today and try to have a good feeling and play good tennis, “hill.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Robert Maynard, and I am a passionate journalist with experience in sports writing. For the last few years, I have been writing for Today Times Live. My main focus has been on sports-related stories and features. With my strong background in journalism and extensive knowledge of the industry, I am able to provide readers with well-crafted pieces that are both informative and engaging.
