US Open 2024: World No. 3 Carlos Alcaraz loses to Botic van de Zandschulp in second round

Former US Open champion and current World No. 3 Carlos Alcaraz lost his second round match to unseeded Botic van de Zandschulp in the second round of the ongoing US Open.

The four-time Grand Slam champion was beaten 6-1, 7-5, 6-4 by Zandschulp, ranked 74 in the world, as the Spaniard was found wanting on many occasions.

Alcaraz’s record in 2024 stands at 39-9. He has won three titles in the season, including two Grand Slams – Indian Wells, Roland Garros and Wimbledon.

He won the silver medal at the Paris Olympics, losing the gold medal match to Novak Djokovic.

The Spaniard has now lost three of his last four matches.

A shaky start combined with a plethora of unforced errors did no good to Alcaraz as the Dutchman halted the Spaniard’s 15-match winning run at the Grand Slams.

Alcaraz did not start well and lost the first three games as Van de Zandschulp came up with an excellent defending game, especially from the baseline.

Once he took the lead, it was just a matter of time before he closed the deal in the first set with Alcaraz just able to win one game. A break of serve in the sixth game gave the Dutchman the advantage and he held his serve the next game to go 1-0 up.

Alcaraz tried to grow into the game with a good forehand pass to hold serve in the first game of the second set but Van de Zandschulp soon broke Alcaraz again to set up a 2-1 lead.

Alcaraz broke back but soon sprayed a lot of errors, including a double fault, as Van de Zandschulp put his mark on the match.

The 21-year-old Spaniard needed a break before the third set to gather his thoughts but nothing worked in his favour as his forehands went wayward and backhands went long and wide.

The players exchanged breaks but the Dutch-born player kept his cool to complete the upset in no time, in straight sets.

Van de Zandschulp said he was lost for words after what was one of his biggest wins of his career. “I’m a little bit lost for words. It’s been an incredible evening, the first night session for me on Arthur Ashe. The crowd was amazing,” he said on a courtside interview after the match.

The Dutchman said he took a lot of confidence from his first round match and the key in this match was the belief that he could beat the Spaniard. “I got a lot of confidence from my last match (against Denis Shapovalov). I played really solid and from point one tonight, I believed I could have a chance and you see how it sometimes turns out,” he added.

He concluded by saying that to beat top-ranked players one needed to be calm and he did exactly that. “I had some nerves but I think if you want to beat one of these guys you have to be unbelievably calm and keep your head there,” he concluded.