Carlos Alcaraz opened his US Open title defense with a 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 win over Roman Safiullin, his first singles match since April following a wrist injury. He addressed Novak Djokovic’s stunning first-round exit at his press conference afterwards, clearly caught off guard by the result.
Djokovic lost in five sets to Argentina’s Mariano Navone, ranked No. 49, marking the first time in his career he’s fallen in the opening round at the US Open. It removed a potential semifinal opponent from Alcaraz’s side of the draw and became the bigger talking point of the day, even overshadowing the Spaniard’s own successful return to competition.
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Asked about the result during a post-match press conference, Carlos Alcaraz didn’t hold back his surprise, having caught the closing stages of the match himself:
“I saw the 5th set. Obviously it was the first time Novak lost in the 1st round here in this tournament. So it’s a big surprise to be honest. Someone like Novak going out in the tournament in the 1st round is surprising. But here, every Grand Slam, it’s really difficult to get through every round. Every player is really tough. You have to earn the win since the first ball until the last one.”
“As you said, he was in my part of the draw, but it would’ve been in the semis. For me the semis are still far away. I just try to be round by round,” he added.
For Djokovic, the loss marks his earliest Grand Slam exit in two decades and raises fresh questions about his form heading into the back half of the season, following a Wimbledon run that had already shown signs of him struggling to keep pace physically with the tour’s younger contenders.
“I missed everything” – Carlos Alcaraz gives emotional speech after advancing to US Open 2R
Carlos Alcaraz got emotional in his on-court interview after beating Roman Safiullin to reach the second round, reflecting on just how much his four-month absence from the tour had taken out of him. It marked his first singles win since April, when a right wrist injury forced him out of the French Open, Wimbledon, and other important tournaments.
Speaking to the Arthur Ashe crowd afterwards, Carlos Alcaraz didn’t hold back on how meaningful the moment was for him. He made clear that returning at the US Open specifically, a tournament he’s won twice before, made the comeback feel even more fitting.
“For me it’s been a really tough 5 months,” he said. “Being able to step on Arthur Ashe and being able to compete again… as I said before the tournament, I couldn’t decide to come back in a better tournament than here in New York. It’s a really special tournament for me.”
“I tried to enjoy as much as I can. I missed it. I missed the crowd. The energy. I missed competition. I missed everything. I’m just really really happy I was able to compete again,” he added.
Carlos Alcaraz will next face Jaime Faria as he looks to build on his opening performance and continue his run toward an eighth Grand Slam title. With his arch-rival Jannik Sinner out with an injury, Alcaraz should feel more confident about his chances.
Edited by Pritha Ghosh