Carlos Alcaraz and Emma Raducanu’s US Open partnership now in doubt as Cincinnati Open final is set

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Carlos Alcaraz has returned to the Cincinnati Open final after winning his semifinal matchup with an injured Alexander Zverev.

Alcaraz advanced past Zverev in straight sets, beating the German 6-4, 6-3 to reach the championship match in Ohio.

There, he will meet Jannik Sinner for the fourth time this season, having clashed with the world number one at three tour-level finals already in 2025.

The most recent of which came in SW19, where Sinner won his first Wimbledon title after overcoming Alcaraz on Centre Court.

Carlos Alcaraz’s US Open mixed doubles campaign with Emma Raducanu now in doubt

They will face off in the final on Monday, instead of a weekend, due to the new 12-day Masters 1000 format implemented for the first time in Cincinnati this year.

The scheduling of the title bout means the Spaniard’s US Open mixed doubles campaign alongside partner Emma Raducanu may be over before it has begun.

Round one of the reimagined mixed doubles tournament at Flushing Meadows is due to get underway on Tuesday, the 19th of August, during ‘Fan Week’.

With just 24 hours between Alcaraz’s final in Cincinnati, and the opening round in New York, it is hard to see how the world number two will be able to feature in both.

Sinner’s doubles partnership with WTA star Emma Navarro is also now in doubt for the same reason, while Zverev may withdraw due to injury struggles.

Carlos Alcaraz’s much-improved hard-court swing this year

This year, Alcaraz has made a significant improvement compared to his 2024 Cincinnati Open campaign, which ended abruptly in his opening matchup with Gael Monfils.

He had a busy summer last season, making deep runs at Wimbledon and the Paris Olympics, which did not bode well for his North American hard-court swing.

After losing to Monfils in Cincinnati, he crashed out in the second round of the US Open to Botic van de Zandschulp in straight sets.

Having made the final at the Masters 1000 event this time around, he has gained plenty of ranking points and is closing in on regaining his position of number one in the world.