Just over a week ago, in R16 of the Cincinnati Open against Luca Nardi, Carlos Alcaraz did not shy away from standing up for what he thought was not his fault. Then, after two matches, the chair umpire asked him to hide the Evian -labelled water bottles he carried. Since the World No. 2 was not aware of any rule against bringing his sponsor’s accessories to the court, he did not budge. That would mean paying a fine. After a long back and forth, an attendant took care of the bottles. Fast forward to the US Open, Alcaraz had to stand against another rule.

Carlos Alcaraz entered the Flushing Meadows with good momentum from Cincinnati. However, he knows he has a mountain to climb with a tough draw carding him against multiple former champs, possibly including Novak Djokovic. So, he is a

See Full Page