Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz heads into the US Open with high hopes once again.
“I try to win every slam I compete in,” said the 20-year-old Spaniard, who won his first major event in New York last year. Since then, he has built on his status as the scene’s new top star and followed it up with a triumph at Wimbledon.
In the final, he beat record Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic of Serbia, who is likely to be his biggest opponent again at the US Open. Djokovic, who was unable to compete in the metropolis last year, wants to get back to the title and top of the world rankings. “You just have to take your hat off to a guy like that, who plays so maturely and can handle the pressure so well at 20 years old,” Djokovic said, full of respect for his opponent.
“Mentally we will try to forget that I am defending the title,” Alcaraz said. “We will just focus match by match, show our best level in every match and see if I can win the second title here in the end,” he said. Alcaraz, however, was definitely warned: “Every player here, every match is tough,” he said: “Any player can beat you.”
Dominik Koepfer (Furtwangen) will try to do so in the first round. The Davis Cup player has recently been in good form.
