Carlos Alcaraz knocked out in straight sets in major US Open shock
Botic van De Zandschulp won 6-1 7-5 6-4 against the former champion in front of a stunned Arthur Ashe crowd
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Your support makes all the difference.Carlos Alcaraz crashed out of the US Open after suffering one of the biggest shocks of all time when he lost to Botic van De Zandschulp.
The world number three came into the tournament in New York aiming to make it three grand slams in a row, having triumphed at the French Open and Wimbledon.
But he could not get past the second round stage as world number 74 Van De Zandschulp produced the result of his life to win 6-1 7-5 6-4 in front of a stunned Arthur Ashe crowd.
The Dutchman has previously been ranked as high as 22 in the world.
He was helped considerably by an erratic and error-strewn performance from Alcaraz that the Spaniard occasionally has in his locker.
Jack Draper will have been an interested observer as he was due to meet Alcaraz in Saturday’s third round, but all of a sudden the British number one’s path to the latter stages of the tournament has opened up.
Novak Djokovic will also have enjoyed his late-night viewing as the biggest obstacle between him and a record-breaking 25th grand slam title is now going home.
“I am a little bit lost for words, it has been an incredible evening for me,” De Zandschulp, who had never beaten a top-10 player at a grand slam, said.
“It’s an unbelievable night.
“I got a lot of confidence from the last match. From point one I believed I had a chance and you can see how it sometimes turns out.
“I had some nerves but if you want to beat one of these guys you have to be calm and keep your head otherwise they can take advantage.”
The Dutchman must have felt he was dreaming after a dominant first set which saw him drop just one game, but it carried on and a clutch break at the back end of the second set put him in total control.
When Alcaraz overturned an early break in the third set and held to go 4-3, the Spaniard began smiling and interacting as if the scoreline was in his favour.
There was a sense that the comeback may be starting but the 28-year-old De Zandschulp rallied, winning the final three games to claim one of the biggest all-time shocks.
Alcaraz said: “It was a fight against myself, in my mind during the match.
“In tennis, you are playing against someone that wants the same as you, to win the match, and you have to be as calm as you can just to think better in the match and try to do good things.
“Today I was playing against the opponent, and I was playing against myself. I mean, I had a lot of emotions that I couldn’t control.
“The tennis schedule is so tight. I’ve been playing a lot of matches lately, you know, with Roland Garros, with Wimbledon, Olympic Games.
“I took a little break after the Olympic Games. I thought it was enough. It was really helpful for me. Probably it wasn’t enough.”
Former champion Daniil Medvedev is going about his business quietly with an easy win over Fabian Marozsan.
Seventh seed Hubert Jurkacz became the second biggest men’s casualty after he was beaten by Jordan Thompson in straight sets.
Home favourite Sebastian Korda, seeded 16th, also lost.
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