It wasn’t the day for the Spanish tennis star and the recent Wimbledon winner Carlos Alcaraz , as he lost in straight sets to Dutch tennis player Botis Van de Zandschulp, by 1-6, 5-7, 4-6, at the Arthur Ashe Stadium. The hard court wasn’t his thing, leading him out of the US Open and away from his Grand Slam dream. 

Alcaraz had beaten the Dutch player earlier in 2021 and 2022, and this defeat seemed really impervious for the 2024 Olympic silver medalist. He lost the first set by 1-6, while he put up some good defense in the second set, he lost the third set by 4-6. Previously, he had lost two matches, it seemed like the hard courts of America weren’t really a good base for him anymore. 

The massive defeat of Alcaraz

The opening set was a failure, the 21 year old had missed serves against the Dutch player. There were hopes that the Wimbledon champion would turn back the game, as champions are also known as game makers, but the dry spell ran throughout the match. The Dutchman seemed solid and his striking serves were not enough for Alcaraz, by defeating Alcaraz in the US Open, he was termed as the ‘King slayer’, in the Game of Courts. In the next match, Zandschulp would face British player Jack Draper. 

The bad serves by Alcaraz and a smooth play by Zandschulp was the highlight of the match, and a horrendous nightmare for the Spanish star. It was his worst match, and it was clearly evident, because a champion losing to a player mid in the rankings is not just a reputation slam for the champion, but a redemption win for the mid opponent. A player like Alcaraz losing three consecutive ground sets isn’t just a major disappointment, but a bitter and terrifying loss. 

Carlos Alcaraz in his statement had mentioned that he was hoping his opponent would make mistakes, but clearly he was disillusioned. He didn’t know what to do and how to improve his level during the match and the mental pressure was real as he was busy during summer winning matches and tournaments here and there. Between the sets, he looked in the direction of his coach Juan Carlos Ferrero, and gestured that he wasn’t thinking straight and the match seemed tough. 

It was the opponent’s display of masterclass defense and sportsmanship, with good use of the forehand, he sent commanding serves which terrorized Alcaraz in the court, even when Alcaraz seemed close to win. The Dutchman found ways to close the match with a victorious win. Zandschulp when asked about his big achievement said that he is still processing and it’s a good win. He said that he came out of injury and he had to play it or not.

Zandschulp’s injury affected him in his rankings, dropping low to ATP Challenger, but somehow he found his way back to defeating the mega star Carlos Alcaraz. 

Carlos Alcaraz and his shattered dream of Grand Slam

Alcaraz had won the French Open and Wimbledon earlier, raising his chances to win the Grand Slam this year, and supposedly he was the tournament’s favorite, this season. However, this was reduced to a loss against a 28 year old Dutch player. 

This means there are no chances for him to win the Grand Slam this year, leaving the path open for the defending champion Novak Djokovic and Jannik Sinner. 

When asked about his defeat in the US Open, Alcaraz opened about how he played a lot of matches for Roland Garros, Wimbledon and the Olympic Games. He even took a break to heal, which seemed to have backfired. He said that he came to the US Open with the intention of winning and a lot of energy, which hasn’t turned out well.