FLASH
Shkruar nga Pamfleti
Carlos Alcaraz seems unstoppable. On the biggest stage in tennis, he reinforced that feeling with a remarkable performance against his greatest rival, completely defeating Jannik Sinner, the No. 1 seed and defending champion, to win his second US Open title with a 6-2, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 victory.
In this way, Alcaraz has knocked Sinner off the podium, taking the lead in the standings for the first time in two years.
The 22-year-old is one of the greatest young players in history: he is the second youngest player to win 6 grand slam titles, trailing only Björn Borg.
Alcaraz could do whatever he wanted with the tennis ball for the better part of three hours. He served brilliantly and hit his devastating forehand with absolute precision, but also displayed his variation to the fullest, constantly changing the pace, spin and trajectory of his shots. He kept Sinner completely off balance and unable to gain any momentum with his devastating groundstrokes.
This was one of the most significant days of the tennis year, yet the narrative was hijacked by the presence of Donald Trump, the president of the United States.
Arthur Ashe Stadium was surrounded by airport-style security barriers overnight, and as fans began lining up to enter the stadium, they were watched by Secret Service agents. The men's trophy was placed in the Rolex Suite next to Trump, which is not the usual protocol. When the US president finally appeared on the big screen at the end of the first set, most of the audience booed.
As 2 p.m. approached, the embarrassment continued for the United States Tennis Association. Due to dramatically increased security, lines to enter the stadium stretched across the entire tournament grounds, and kickoff was delayed until 2:30 p.m. The final began with thousands of fans still waiting to take their seats. Hundreds more were still outside during the second set.
No one, it turned out, was as excited about a second leg of the French Open and Wimbledon finals as Alcaraz himself. He was captivating from the start, in every aspect of his extraordinary game. He continued the excellent serving form that has carried him throughout the tournament and hit his devastating ball with complete freedom, completely dominating the baseline.
After facing an hour of relentless pressure, Sinner broke into the match on Alcaraz's serve at 2-1, scoring a brilliant point after a masterful forehand volley to make it 0-30 before breaking serve to reach the end.
After committing only two unforced errors in the first set, Alcaraz's increasing number of errors allowed Sinner to surge into the match.
Suddenly, Sinner was hitting his first serve and controlling many more exchanges with his devastating, metronomic ball, as he efficiently tied the match.
Less than two months ago at Wimbledon, Sinner was a set behind Alcaraz before struggling through the final three sets. But that was not to be again. Alcaraz recovered, restoring his dominant serve, variation and baseline control. After grabbing the first break, he quickly moved into the third set to build a two-sets-to-one lead before immediately generating break points on Sinner’s serve.
Lini një Përgjigje