Third-seeded Carlos Alcaraz was able to defeat Australian Li Tu on Tuesday 6-2, 4-6, 6-3, 6-1, to advance to the second round of the US Open 2024.
With the victory, the Spaniard pushed his Grand Slam winning streak to 15 matches, after taking home both Roland Garros and Wimbledon earlier this year. He will attempt to join Rod Laver and Rafael Nadal as the only men in the modern era to win the French Open, Wimbledon and the US Open in the same calendar year.
The 21-year-old Alcaraz got off to a hot start against Li Tu, winning the first four games of the match in quick time. The Australian however, was able to stabilize in the second set and even out the match at a set apiece to put pressure back on the champ.
The third set was close once again but Alcaraz’s break for a 4-3 lead opened up the match, as he won eight straight games after. That was enough to take this third and build a 5-0 lead in the fourth, which ended up being too much for the 28-year-old Tu to come back from.
Alcaraz now goes on to face 2021 quarter-finalist Botic van de Zandschulp in the second round. Based on current trajectory, he may be headed toward a possible semi-final showdown with top-ranked Australian Open champion Jannik Sinner.
Djokovic Start Off Bid For 25th Slam With Win
Novak Djokovic was able to start off his bid for a record 25th Grand Slam singles title with an easy win over Moldovan Radu Albot in his first round matchup.
The Serbian is currently tied with Margaret Court for the most major singles titles of all-time at 24 and will be looking to take sole possession of the record with a US Open victory.
Less than a month ago the 37-year-old was able to clinch his first ever Olympic gold medal and looked in good form coming into New York. He won 6-2 6-2 6-4 against Albot, not looking like he was in any difficulty the entire match.
Despite the rather straightforward win, there are areas to improve on for Djokovic. He had notable problems with his serve, with 10 double faults and only 47% of his first serves going into play. He also had 40 unforced errors, which is very unlike the world no. 2 in major tournaments.
Next up for Djokovic will be compatriot Laslo Djere in the second round on Wednesday.
Raducanu Falls In First Round to Sofia Kenin
In the women’s singles draw, Emma Raducanu fell to Sofia Kenin 6-1, 3-6, 6-4 in the first round on Tuesday night, keeping the 2021 champion winless at the tournament since her title.
It was just three years ago that the British Raducanu won the U.S. Open at the age of 18, becoming the first qualifier to claim any Grand Slam singles championship. In 2022 she was eliminated in the first round by Alizé Cornetand then the following year had her miss the tournament due to injury.
This time around, Raducanu was outplayed in the second two sets by Kenin, an American who won the Australian Open in 2020. She did however get off to a terrific start, winning the first set 6-1 and putting her opponent on the backfoot.
Unfortunately for her, she couldn’t keep it going in the second or third sets, as her serve began to fail her. In the end Kenin finished with 45 winners, nearly twice as many as Raducanu’s 24.
Also in the Women’s singles draw, Japan’s Naomi Osaka made a successful US Open return by beating Jelena Ostapenko in their first-round match. The two-time US Open champion missed last year’s tournament after giving birth to her daughter. She will have a tough second round match ahead of her as she takes on Czech pro Karolína Muchová.
