NEW YORK/STARNBERG, September 12, 2022
Carlos Alcaraz captured the title of the 2022 US Open and will become the youngest and first teenage World No. 1 in ATP Rankings history. The 19-year-old Spaniard battled past fifth favourite Casper Ruud of Norway 6-4, 2-6, 7-6(1), 6-3 in Sunday’s singles final on Arthur Ashe Stadium.
In the pair’s third meeting with both players competing for their first Grand Slam title, third-seeded Alcaraz struck 14 aces and won 74 per cent of his first-service points. The Murcia native hit 42 winners and broke his rival three times to secure victory in three hours and 20 minutes.
The dream becomes reality.@carlosalcaraz is a Grand Slam champion. pic.twitter.com/sPFaAiVFNR
— US Open Tennis (@usopen) September 11, 2022
Alcaraz will become the 28th World No. 1 on Monday, the fourth player from Spain, joining his coach Juan Carlos Ferrero, Carlos Moya and Rafael Nadal.
“This is something I have dreamt of since I was a kid, to be number one in the world, to be a champion of a Grand Slam. It is tough to talk right now. There are a lot of emotions right now,” said Alcaraz during his on-court interview.
“It is something I have tried to achieve. All the hard work I have done. I am just 19 years old so the top decisions are with my team and my parents. It is really special for me.
“My Mum is not here, and my Grandfather. I was thinking about them. A lot of my family are here but there are a lot of people from my family that couldn’t come here to watch the final and I was thinking of them.”
On how he is feeling after a total of 23 hours and 40 minutes on court over the past fortnight, the youngster added:
“I always said there was no time to be tired in the final run of a tournament. You have to give everything on court, everything you have inside. It is something I have worked really hard for and it is not time to be tired.”
Ruud: “We knew what was at stake!”
Ruud, who finished runner-up to Nadal at Roland-Garros in early June, will rise to World No. 2.
“It’s tough to explain but things have been going so well,” the 23-year-old from Oslo said about his season. “Today was a special evening for both Carlos and I. We knew what was at stake, and I think it’s fitting both finalists will be number one and number two in the world. I’m happy with that number and I will continue to chase that ranking and my first Grand Slam.
“I owe everything to my family and they’ve been caring, helpful, thoughtful in all my career. They are the reason I am able to be here today and I hope we can continue to be a strong team in the future.”
