It took just seven minutes for Carlos Alcaraz to recognise that he was having another one of those days where he could do whatever he wanted with a tennis ball. Up a game point in his opening service game, the Spaniard skipped around the ball from far behind the baseline in his backhand corner and attempted the riskiest shot possible, unleashing a remarkable forehand winner.
This would not be the last time that the Arthur Ashe Stadium crowd collectively gasped at Alcaraz’s greatness as he continued to radiate confidence and calm in New York, moving effortlessly into the semi‑finals with a 6-4, 6-2, 6-4 win against Jiri Lehecka.
“Today I played [an] almost perfect match,” Alcaraz said. “Playing in a quarter-final of a grand slam, I’m feeling like: ‘OK, just two more steps and let’s see what happens.’ I’m feeling great and hungry to make it.”
This tournament has further underscored the ease and confidence surrounding Alcaraz’s tennis. Having reached the finals of his past seven tournaments while leading the tour with 59 match wins and six titles, this is the most consistent stretch of the 22-year-old’s career and he has played with total freedom over the past 10 days. He has now reached a grand slam semi-final without dropping a set for the first time in his career.
Still, Alcaraz began the match fully conscious of the fact that Lehecka represented his toughest opponent so far and things could be different. The talented 23-year-old has been on the verge of breaking through for some time. He is armed with a powerful first serve and a destructive forehand. At the Qatar Open in February, the Czech toppled Alcaraz in three sets.
This time, Alcaraz set the tone immediately by breaking Lehecka’s serve in the opening game. Across nearly two hours, he never let up. Alcaraz served spectacularly well, marching through his service games, his variety of shot contrasted starkly with Lehecka’s one-note attack. His defence made the court seem so narrow for his challenger.
Carlos Alcaraz serves to Jiri Lehecka in front of a large Arthur Ashe Stadium crowd. Photograph: Kena Betancur/AFP/Getty Images
After two convincing sets, where Alcaraz broke in the opening service game and never looked back, the third set particularly demonstrated his growth. Lehecka played his best set of the match, moving through his own service games and putting pressure on Alcaraz.
In the past, Alcaraz may have lost focus. On this occasion, the moment Lehecka began to show nerves, he pounced. At 4-4, instead of searching for a highlight-reel winner, Alcaraz locked down his game, making deep returns and offering up no free errors. He broke Lehecka’s serve with a spectacular defensive effort, celebrating with a roar.
Alcaraz’s greater consistency has also been a result of improvements to his serve. He had opted to significantly change his service motion during his pre-season and over the course of this year it has become increasingly dependable. Against Lehecka, he landed 63% of his first serves, won 84% of first serve points and 41% of his serves went unreturned, an extremely healthy serving day that ended with him not facing a single break point in the match.
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Draper out of Davis Cup tie against Poland
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Jack Draper will miss Great Britain’s Davis Cup tie against Poland next weekend through injury.
The world No 5 pulled out of the US Open ahead of his scheduled second-round match because of a flare-up of the bone bruising in his left arm that had kept him sidelined since Wimbledon.
The Davis Cup World Group match in Gdynia on 12-13 September comes too soon for Draper, with questions marks over when he will be able to return.
Davis Cup captain Leon Smith said: “It goes without saying that obviously it’s a real shame that we can’t call upon Jack Draper to be in the team with his injury and of course we wish him the best with his recovery and for the rest of the season.”
In Draper’s absence, Cameron Norrie will lead Britain’s team alongside Jacob Fearnley, while there are three debutants named in Wimbledon doubles champions Julian Cash and Lloyd Glasspool plus Arthur Fery.
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“I’ve been improving a lot, and just every practice, every match I’ve been trying to feel more comfortable with the movement, with hitting good serves, and the percentage as well, it’s really important,” Alcaraz said.
“Tennis, it’s really hard sometimes, because one day you can serve really, really well, and the next match you can feel completely different and really bad. I’m trying to maintain focus on the serve, trying to do everything the same and getting the good feeling.”
Even for Alcaraz, who continues to pile up big titles at a faster rate than anyone else in the world, his recent efficiency has been striking. He has always been prone to dramatic moments of self-sabotage. The next step in Alcaraz’s career was learning how to perform more consistently, allowing him to preserve his mental and physical energy for his biggest rivals. As he moves closer to a potential sixth grand slam title, his progress is undeniable.
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