Tennis
U.S. Open
FLUSHING MEADOWS, N.Y. — Carlos Alcaraz arrived in the United States last month with a mission, and he played tennis like it until he had what he wanted: Another Grand Slam trophy at the U.S. Open, and something that means even more to him than that.
For a little under 15 months, Jannik Sinner, the player that Alcaraz beat Sunday, had sat at the top of the sport as world No. 1. But during that reign, Alcaraz came out on top nearly every time they played. Sinner beat him at Wimbledon six weeks ago. But between June 10, 2024, and the start of the U.S. Open final on Sept. 7, 2025, the ultimate span of Sinner’s recent stay at the top of the world rankings, they had met five times. Alcaraz won four times.
Then came this final. Alcaraz walked onto Arthur Ashe Stadium with the chance to reclaim two tennis thrones: the statistical one built on wins and points, and the more nebulous but no less important one built on emotion and personal duels. Sinner had the ranking edge and had taken over the sport in a more emotional way at Wimbledon. There, just five weeks after Alcaraz had toppled Sinner in a mind-bending French Open final, Sinner had beaten Alcaraz decisively to end his two-year-run as champion of the most important competition in the sport.
