Carlos Alcaraz noticed a ‘huge difference’ in his own game between the first and the second set at the US Open

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Carlos Alcaraz outlined the difference between his first and second set performances at the US Open.

The 21-year-old began his latest campaign at Flushing Meadows under the lights on Arthur Ashe Stadium, where he secured with a four-set win over qualifier Li Tu.

The Spaniard returned to winning ways after suffering back-to-back defeats at the Olympic Games and the Cincinnati Open before arriving in New York.

But Carlos Alcaraz has shaken off the cobwebs and is up and running at the Grand Slam he won for the first time in 2022.

What did Carlos Alcaraz say about his first and second set performances in his US Open first round match?

After a nervy start Tu began to play with some freedom and began attacking Alcaraz’s second serves.

Though down a set and a break, Tu claimed three successive games while leading 4-5, before converting his fifth set point to level the match.

This was the wake-up call Alcaraz needed as he stormed through the next two sets for the loss of just four games.

During his post-match press conference Alcaraz discussed the difference in his level from set one and two when Lu found a way back into the match, and it concerned his unforced error count.

“The first set I made just two unforced errors. The second set I made 18, so that was a huge difference for me,” Alcaraz told reporters.

“He started to play better. Serving better. Being more aggressive and not making a lot of mistakes like he did in the first set. But talking about myself, from two to 18, it has been a huge difference for me.”

Carlos Alcaraz is delighted to be in the next round of the US Open

Alcaraz has fond memories of playing at the US Open, which was the scene of his first Grand Slam triumph back in 2022.

He has a burning desire to replicate that success in 2024, and he is pleased to be safely through to the next round.

His next opponent will be Botic van de Zandschulp, who took Denis Shapovalov in three sets to book his spot in round two.

“First of all, I’m really happy to get through and [have] a chance to be better in the next round,” Alcaraz added. “Obviously, I felt well on court. I think I hit the ball well. I moved well.

“[There are] a few things that I have to improve if I want to keep going in the draw, but obviously I have to give credit to him as well. He played really good tennis and surprised me a little bit in the second set. I leave the court happy with my performance.”