Carlos Alcaraz went all the way at a Grand Slam for the first time in his career at the 2022 US Open.
The Spaniard, 19 at the time, defeated the likes of Jannik Sinner, Marin Cilic and Frances Tiafoe en route to the final, where he ultimately met Casper Ruud.
Alcaraz and Ruud were batting it out for both the US Open title and world number one status, which neither player had claimed before.
Though the Norwegian managed to take a set off his opponent, he had no answer for the teenager, who emerged victorious 6-4, 2-6, 7-6, 6-3.
Despite his defeat, Ruud had high praise for Alcaraz, who has since gone on to clinch five more Grand Slam titles.
Casper Ruud’s reaction to losing in the 2022 US Open final
In his press conference after the match, he said of his conqueror: “When someone asks about a player’s biggest weapon, for instance, you tend to think forehand, backhand, serve, whatever it is.
“But sort of his movement is one of his many weapons, of course. It makes us other players feel like you need to paint the lines, sort of to be able to hit a winner. Sometimes even that’s not enough.
“He’s very fast. He’s very quick. He’s a great mover. He can get to balls that we’ve probably never seen before.
“But you have other great movers, as well. I mean, this game has become so physically demanding, and all the players in the top of the world, they do the right things to improve always.
Carlos Alcaraz has only ever lost one of SEVEN Grand Slam finals…
“Speed, agility of the players I think are just improving, improving. The physical aspect has not changed, but it has improved by everyone.
“I think Novak and Rafa and also Federer, I think they kind of set the bar on how well you can move out there. Rafa, when he was Carlos’ age, he was also similar. He tracked down everything.
“Almost no one could hit a winner on him. Novak the same with his flexibility. He gets to certain shots that you think, How is that even possible?
“Carlos has sort of a mixture of both. He’s fast, flexible. He can slide around. It’s impressive. Yeah, he’s a hard nut to crack.”
Casper Ruud hoped he and Carlos Alcaraz would play another major final
Analysing the bout, Ruud said: “I think it was an exciting match to play and be a part of. It was many fun rallies and fun shots. Of course, disappointing in the end that it didn’t go my way. But that’s how it goes.
“Carlos stepped up when he really needed to. Especially in the third set, it was close to go in my favor. I had some set points and couldn’t take care of them.
“He just played too good on those points. We’ve seen it many times before, he steps up when he needs to. When it’s close, he pulls out great shots.
Carlos Alcaraz would be the greatest youngster ever if he won the 2026 Australian Open – change my mind…
“All credit to him. At the same time I’m proud of the match and the two weeks. I gave it all. I left it all out on the court.
“Played some phenomenal tennis throughout the two weeks, probably my best tennis ever on this surface. So I’m very happy in the end. We’ll hopefully get another chance at a slam in the future.”
Since then, Ruud has played in one Grand Slam final, but lost to Novak Djokovic at Roland Garros in 2023.
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