NEW YORK – Carlos Alcaraz’s unintentional buzz minimize is transferring on the US Open because of a easy victory within the second spherical on Wednesday evening, a yr after shedding that stage within the Grand Slam match.
Second-seeded Alcaraz, who shaved his head after his brothers ruined his hair, wanted greater than a fifth of an hour to beat Italy’s sixty fifth place Mattia Bellucci 6-1, 6-0, 6-3 beneath the lights of Arthur Ash Stadium.
Alcaraz gained 86% of his first serve factors and didn’t face breakpoints whereas accumulating a 32-11 benefit to the winner. His 4 drop video games tied his minimal in a accomplished main match.
General, it is a far cry from what occurred within the second spherical at Flushing Meadows in 2024.
Alcaraz entered one with 15 unbeaten runs in main tournaments – primarily because of the titles of French Open and Wimbledon – however got here out on the improper finish of a straight set defeat towards Botic Van de Zandschulp.
There was no such stunning alternative for Bellucci.
“Yeah, I performed nice,” mentioned Alcaraz, who gained the primary of 5 grand slam titles on the US Open in 2022. “At the moment wasn’t his day.
Alcaraz gained all 27 service video games in two rounds with Flushing Meadows and gained serves in 32 consecutive video games again to the Cincinnati Open semifinals.
Wednesday marked Alcaraz’s 79th profession victory within the majors in his nineteenth Grand Slam look. Amongst males making their debut within the open period, solely John McEnroe, Bjorn Borg and Rafael Nadal have gained matches within the first 19 main appearances.
Alcaraz will end eightieth within the main victory towards thirty second seed Luciano Dadeli on Friday. It is going to be their first profession assembly.
ESPN analysis and Related Press contributed to this report.
