Bill Simons
We all make mistakes. And when I go on a three-week bender during each of the Slams, writing daily reports jammed with hot takes, endless stats and shoot-from-the-hip opinions, inevitably there’s a mistake or two.
I thought tugging on Superman’s cape – asking whether the soul of the US Open was in trouble – would for sure be my journalistic Waterloo. I didn’t know whether I’d be drawn and quartered, tarred and feathered or just shamed out of the sport.
How could you? No loyalty. Don’t you know your lane?
But I haven’t been banished yet.
The mistake I made was thinking it would take something close to a miracle for Carlos Alcaraz to win the US Open. I wrote, “If somehow he comes back and wins seven best-of-five matches to capture the Open, he might be anointed as a certified tennis Houdini.”
After all, Carlos hadn’t played for over four months. And wrist injuries are bright red flags. Just ask Juan Martin del Potro, whose once lofty career was completely derailed by them.
When Alcaraz first emerged in New York and played mixed doubles with Serena, he was out of sorts and out of rhythm.
Then, in the opening rounds, it took him a while to get into gear. His serve was slower. His focus wavered.
But against Tommy Paul in the fourth round, we saw the Carlos who has long dazzled us. He gave us a stress-free master class.
Paul, an Australian Open semifinalist and one of the dozen best players of his generation, was dispatched 6-4, 6-3, 6-4. His press conference afterward sounded almost like terms of surrender – a cold shower of reality.
Tommy didn’t exactly wave the white flag. But he quickly conceded, “Carlos is different.” He said Alcaraz had simply dominated him, and was playing at “a different level.” Most tellingly, Paul conceded that he could have played considerably better and still lost.
On court, Tommy was all but hapless. His usually nasty slices became little more than cat bait for the Spaniard’s forehand.
Yes, Carlos’ serve wasn’t as imposing as it once was. But he made up for it with blistering forehands, creativity, court sense and an ability to put pressure on Paul from virtually everywhere. Alcaraz broke four times and seemed to be chilling out on a tennis cruise.
It wasn’t just that Alcaraz dominated Paul. It was the seamless way the Spanish conquistador reentered the tennis circus.
Beaming smile. Flowing hair. Grooving to music on changeovers. Goodness, in his ESPN interview, he thought he was playing Medvedev or Cerundolo in the quarterfinals – not Shelton.
Players were delighted to see Carlos back. Fans quickly realized that tennis just isn’t the same without him.
Without Carlitos this summer, the game was left with Slam winners who didn’t exactly deliver over-the-top sizzle. Jannik Sinner is an astounding player. His ball-striking is over the top – but his charisma is modest. Too often that amazing old GOAT Novak Djokovic has been hobbled. And Alexander Zverev, depending on your perspective, is either a tad too grumpy or still saddled with a dicey backstory.
But Alcaraz has such delight and natural ease. More than any other player, he lights up our sport.
He doesn’t strut or put on airs. When he takes his shirt off, the squeals are Nadalesque. He survived a wardrobe malfunction with a grin. When he smiles, all of tennis kind of melts. He’s got a cool new victory ritual – he flexes a bow, the symbol of kingship in the Odyssey.
On the likability spectrum, he’s right up there with the sweet Kim Clijsters.
But this guy is just 23. He has already pocketed seven Slams. He’s scandal-free, a wealthy hunk, beloved and magical. Ah, how sweet it would be if we all could climb Mt. Success with the ease Carlos does.
And I said it would take a Houdini-like miracle for him to make a run at the Open.
Oops!
But then again, there’s another school of thought here.
Ben Shelton is, in some ways, America’s answer to Alcaraz.
Sure, he’s left-handed, was a collegian and for years he didn’t travel overseas. That made sense. His dad and coach, Bryan Shelton, is the only coach to win NCAA team championships with both a women’s and a men’s team.
More to the point, the big-hitting 23-year-old is widely viewed as the American most likely to end our long Grand Slam drought.
Let’s count down his greatness.
Already he’s won seven titles. He’s No. 6 in the world. He’s in his fifth year on the circuit. He’s won four tournaments this year on three surfaces and two continents, and he’s the No. 1 American. And zero – that’s the number of sets he lost as he swept to the Canadian Open title in August.
As the US Open began, his dad put things in perspective: “You have to ante up everything, but relax and don’t try to do anything special. Be humble, find balance and remember, it’s not a sprint; it’s a marathon – one bite at a time.”
Now comes one hell of a bite.
In by far the most anticipated match of the Open, Shelton faces Alcaraz in the quarterfinals Tuesday night. (If you’ve got $13,328, I’ve got a courtside seat for you. Can’t afford that? Well, how about a nosebleed seat for $950?)
And, as many have noted, Alcaraz is a problem. Carlos has won all three of their previous meetings.
But Shelton has nothing to lose. He’s coming off an impressive win over the surging Stefanos Tsitsipas. Ben will walk onto the world’s biggest tennis stage with his massive weapons, improved variety, considerable experience and, perhaps, a rabidly supportive Ashe Stadium crowd.
There are plenty of pro-American “This at last is our year” vibes in the ether at this year’s Open.
And with Shelton’s blazing forehand and massive serve – 148 mph thunderbolts one moment, nasty kickers the next – he just might take the racket out of Carlos’ hand.
Still, the oddsmakers currently give Shelton roughly a one-in-four chance. So, to prevail, he’d have to tap into his inner Houdini, right?
Wrong!
These days I don’t want to talk about no magic tricks.
99 BOTTLES OF BEER ON THE WALL: For 99 impressive weeks, Aryna Sabalenka has been No. 1. After brushing aside the considerable Naomi Osaka 6-1, 6-4, all world No. 2 Elena Rybakina has to do to become No. 1 is beat Olympic gold medalist Qinwen Zheng in the quarterfinals.
NOT ON OUR BINGO CARDS: Not too many people would have expected France’s Arthur Géa, Dutchman Botic van de Zandschulp, Argentina’s Francisco Cerundolo and Belgium’s Alexander Blockx to reach the fourth round of the US Open.
YOU GOT THAT RIGHT: John McEnroe said, “I bet half the people in the stadium don’t even know who Alexander Blockx is.” BTW, when Inside Tennis used to do alphabetical A-to-Z features, we’d always start with Arthur Ashe for A, Billie Jean King for B and Jimmy Connors for C. Then we’d get to X and start to panic. Fortunately, there was Belgium’s Xavier Malisse. Now Belgium has given us another X – Alexander Blockx.
JUST WONDERING: Have you ever seen Belgium’s new star Alexander Blockx and Canadian Milos Raonic in the same room?
THE MIGHTY FALL: Today, two past US Open champions with a total of ten Slams between them lost. Iga Swiatek fell to Qinwen Zheng, and Naomi Osaka fell to Elena Rybakina.
SPEAK SOFTLY AND CARRY A BIG STICK: ESPN’s broadcaster Chris McKendry said Rybakina is “very quiet, very soft-spoken. We don’t know much about her, but we know this: when titles are big, she plays big.”
THE PRICE OF VICTORY: Teen Iva Jovic offered perhaps the tournament’s best inventory of what it takes to survive a thriller. After beating Alex Eala, she explained, “It took losing my earrings, falling literally flat-out on the floor, cuts on my knees, mental breakdowns. It took literally everything.”
COCO’S QUEEN: US Open guest services worker Ayanna Campbell has become a social media star by dancing and leading chants on the practice courts. A Tennis Channel Instagram video of her welcoming Coco Gauff – “When I say Coco, you say Gauff!” – topped two million views. Coco responded, “My queen! love her♥️.” Campbell’s reaction to her sudden fame: “I was like, ‘I’m so famous.’” Even Mama Gauff was spotted filming her.
GO FIGURE: Sloane Stephens made a surprise visit to Coco Gauff’s tenth birthday party.
SAY IT ISN’T SO: Coco Gauff asked, “Is that rude to say I’m not a huge fan of the Cheesecake Factory cheesecake?” Somewhere, corporate America is calling an emergency meeting.
MESSY ANALYSIS: Andy Roddick said, “No one wins messier than Coco. She has this incredible ability to win matches when she’s not playing her best.”
MEDIA MEMO: Roddick is a fabulous match analyst. A macho quipster, he’s an insightful and inventive wordsmith who obviously draws on his depth of experience and the nuances of tennis, sports competition and contemporary culture. How will this change the broadcasting landscape?
LET US KNOW WHAT YOU REALLY THINK: When a jerk kept on trash-talking Jakub Mensik, the Louis Armstrong crowd started chanting loud and long, “Kick him out, kick him out!” And security did.
15 HONEY DEUCES LATER: Taylor Townsend recalled playing the fan-less COVID US Open, and said it taught her never to take spectators for granted – including those who “show up and cheer and have 15 Honey Deuces.”
