One missed break point, one lost set
Carlos Alcaraz had a break point in the seventh game of the first set. He missed it. Twenty minutes later he was a set down to a player ranked 72nd in the world.
The defending champion recovered to beat Portugal’s Jaime Faria 4-6, 6-0, 6-3, 6-2 overnight at Arthur Ashe Stadium, booking a third-round meeting with China’s Wu Yibing. The match lasted two hours and 40 minutes.
“Tough match for me. Obviously the first set, I was feeling great, I had break point, I missed it,” Alcaraz said afterwards. “After that I was in a rush. I didn’t take time, I wasn’t patient and that obviously cost me the break.”
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Faria’s serve, then Faria’s collapse
Faria levelled at 3-3, broke in the next game and served out the set. The 23-year-old was hitting his first serve at 140 mph, a number Alcaraz brought up himself when asked about the opening exchanges.
“Against someone like Jaime, he’s serving 140, 141, it’s very difficult,” the Spaniard said. “I tried to stay calm … think good things are going to happen again.”
They did. Faria’s serve fell apart in the second set and Alcaraz broke him three times to take it 6-0. Alcaraz still had to save two break points in the opening game of that set before holding. After that, the traffic ran one way.
A wrist, four months out, and a title to defend
Context matters here. Alcaraz arrived in New York having not played a competitive singles match in more than four months, sidelined by a wrist injury. His first-round win was routine to the point of being uninformative. This one told him something, which at this stage of a fortnight is worth more.
The third set followed the same shape: Faria broken to trail 2-0, a break back to 2-1, then broken again for 3-1. The rest went with serve and Alcaraz took a two-sets-to-one lead. In the fourth he moved a double break up at 5-1 and served it out.
Wu Yibing is next. On Wednesday’s evidence, Alcaraz will want a cleaner opening hour than the one he gave himself here.
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