NEW YORK — Carlos Alcaraz’s recent hairstyle adjustment is progressing well at the US Open thanks to a comfortable triumph in the second stage Wednesday night, a year following his elimination at the same point in the Grand Slam event.
The No. 2-seeded Alcaraz — who altered his hairstyle due to an error by his sibling — required just over 90 minutes to overcome 65th-ranked Mattia Bellucci of Italy 6-1, 6-0, 6-3 under the floodlights at Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Alcaraz secured 86% of his initial serve points and did not concede a break point, while achieving a 32-11 advantage in total scoring shots. The four games he surrendered equaled his lowest number in a completed major competition.
In summary, a significant departure from his experience in the second stage at Flushing Meadows in 2024.
Alcaraz entered that match riding a 15-match winning streak at major tournaments — largely attributable to victories at the French Open and Wimbledon — but ultimately suffered a straight-sets loss against Botic Van De Zandschulp.
There was never a substantial risk of a similar upset against Bellucci.
“Yes, I performed exceptionally well, to be frank,” stated Alcaraz, who secured the first of his five Grand Slam titles at the US Open in 2022. “Today wasn’t his most successful day. I aimed to capitalize on his errors as much as possible.”
Alcaraz has been victorious in all 27 of his service games across the initial two stages at Flushing Meadows and has maintained serve in 32 successive games dating back to the semifinals of the Cincinnati Open.
Wednesday marked Alcaraz’s 79th career victory at a major tournament, in his 19th Grand Slam appearance. Among male players debuting in the Open era, only John McEnroe, Bjorn Borg, and Rafael Nadal have achieved a higher number of match victories within their initial 19 major appearances.
Alcaraz will pursue major victory No. 80 on Friday against No. 32 seed Luciano Darderi. This encounter will be their first professional match.
ESPN Research and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
