Carlos Alcaraz had to do harder work on his way to defending his title at the US Open – but is still in the round of 16. The Spaniard won a high-class third round match against the self-sacrificing Brit Daniel Evans on Saturday with 6:2, 6:3, 4:6 and 6:3.
For the first time in the course of the tournament, the number one in the world had to give up a set, and Alcaraz needed 3:13 hours for this work victory. “He’s a complicated opponent, we go well together. When we play against each other, it’s a show and people like it,” said Alcaraz.
In the round of 16 he now faces unseeded Matteo Arnaldi of Italy, who beat Evans’ compatriot Cameron Norrie (No. 16) in three sets. First place in the world rankings, Alcaraz will definitely lose again to Novak Djokovic after the US Open, he can only meet the Serbs in the final.
Alcaraz’ victory on Saturday wasn’t really in danger, but the fans at Arthur Ashe Stadium still got to see a highly entertaining match – also because Evans defended himself as best he could.
Set at number 26, the outsider didn’t give away any games, two endless rallies in the second and third sets were an example: not only did the Spaniard excel technically, Evans knew how to counteract it and also scored numerous balls. In the third round he got the break to make it 4:3 – it was the cornerstone of winning the set. The approximately 23,000 fans repeatedly rewarded both players with standing ovations.