The roof over the Arthur Ashe Stadium pressurized by rain in New York kept the crowd on edge, but neither Carlos Alcaraz nor Casper Ruud looked ready to surrender. The youngster from El Palmar refused to let a dream slip away, even as the heavens opened up and threatened to halt the ascent.
This Sunday, facing a formidable Norwegian opponent in the US Open final, Alcaraz delivered a monumental performance after a grueling 3 hours and 20 minutes, clinching 6-4, 2-6, 7-6 (7-1), and 6-3 in a match filled with momentum shifts. The storm around him mirrored the urgency of the moment, as the young Spaniard claimed a defining title and a place among tennis greats. He had long aspired to the summit, a dream shared by Ruud who also entered the week chasing the No. 1 ranking, a climb that would surge from No. 7 to No. 2 by Monday.
Alcaraz conquered the peak before any other teenager in the Open era, surpassing Lleyton Hewitt’s record as the youngest to reach the top since November 2001 at 20 years and nine months. The victory marked a homecoming for Spanish tennis, reconnecting with mentors and peers who had shaped his path, including Carlos Moyà, his former coach, along with Carlos Ferrero and Rafael Nadal.
WE GO! @carlosalcaraz to win #USOpen in sets of four. pic.twitter.com/87HZpoF5V5
— US Open Tennis (@usopen) September 11, 2022
another great match
Alcaraz has repeatedly stated that fear does not govern him at this moment. After clocking more than 20 hours of match play through marathon sets, including memorable battles against Marin Cilic, Jannik Sinner, and Frances Tiafoe, he understood the need to give everything back to the court. He had declared that there was no time to tire, and he lived up to that vow as the match wore on.
In the opening stages, the Spaniard appeared to seize control with a crucial break in the third game, sealing the set at 6-4 in the 49th minute. Ruud, a 23-year-old with prior success at major events and a recent runner-up at this year’s Miami and Marbella showdowns, answered back quickly. The match evened out within 40 minutes as the two traded blows, reigniting a fierce duel on the big stage.
Swapping memories of Roland Garros and other battles, the scene at Arthur Ashe grew tenser as the crowd’s cheers and the players’ resolve intensified. The stands were a chorus of chants—”Come on Carlos!” and “Come on Murcia!”—punctuated by cries for Ruud and even a supportive roar for Casper. The energy around the court was electric as nearly 24,000 spectators witnessed a duel that felt larger than life.
The third set remained a fierce contest as Alcaraz faced a two-break opportunity for Ruud. He defended relentlessly, producing two blistering passing shots to force a tiebreak, where he displayed a clinical edge and refused to surrender any advantage. The fourth set turned out to be the decider; Alcaraz broke Ruud in the sixth game, then closed out with two aces in the ninth game and a clean finish after the first attempt at a match point was narrowly missed. He sealed the victory and sent Ruud’s challenge into the shadows, confirming his grasp on the title.
Around 7:39 p.m. local time, after 3 hours and 39 minutes on the famous New York court, Alcaraz surpassed the previous Grand Slam record for the youngest champion, a mark previously held by Kevin Anderson at Wimbledon in 2018 when he won under 21. The moment underscored a historic night for a player who has become a symbol of a new generation in the sport.
Smiles and tears
Alcaraz lay on the court in a mix of relief and exhilaration, then embraced Ruud in a moment of mutual respect. The Spaniard then climbed into the stands to share hugs with his family and team, tears mingling with laughter as the scene became a celebration of a long journey and a breakthrough achieved on one of tennis’ grandest stages.
At the awards ceremony, the newly minted champion accepted the winner’s check and opened with a note of solidarity with New York, recalling the city’s resilience in the wake of the September 11 tragedy. Ruud echoed the sentiment, acknowledging the difficulty of living in the present moment under such circumstances. Alcaraz, moved by the moment, spoke of the hard work of his team and family, explaining that his age and the decisions he makes with them shape his path forward. He also remembered his mother and grandfather, who could not travel to New York but remained a constant inspiration.
power of nature
With a champion’s DNA, Alcaraz has proven himself a force of nature, his ascent a meteor-like rise that refuses to slow. Yet the season’s rhythm shows that momentum must be earned and maintained. Early in the year he had not been ranked in the top 100, but by February he stood among the world’s best, climbing into the top 20, then the top 10 by spring, and the top five by summer. In New York he stood alone, a symbol of the new era in men’s tennis.
In a year that also saw Nadal, the Roland Garros and Australian Open champion, rise in conversation, Alcaraz still carried the torch of a breakthrough year. He tallied 50 victories across the season, including a string of hard-fought wins on hard courts, and equaled milestones once associated with the sport’s legends. The year 2022 marked a shift in the conversation around who defines tennis’s future, with Alcaraz proving to be a pivotal figure in that transition.
changing the guard
Observers, including a group of American players, remarked on the sense that youth had taken the lead. The event felt like a turning point in a sport that has long balanced between giants of the previous generation and a rising class ready to redefine the game. While Djokovic and Federer added chapters to their storied careers, the center of gravity clearly shifted toward the younger Spaniard and his contemporaries. In a sense, this Open signaled the dawn of a new era—an era framed by Alcaraz, Ruud, and the next wave of talent rising on the global stage.
As the story continues to unfold, the tennis world watches how these rivalries evolve, how champions carry forward their legacies, and how a single match at the US Open can symbolize a broader evolution in the sport. The prevailing narrative centers on a young champion who seized his moment, reshaping the conversation about who leads tennis into the future with poise, power, and purpose.