Carlos Alcaraz’s US Open championship and No. 1 ranking arrive thanks to his variety

NEW YORK (AP) — Here’s the thing about watching Carlos Alcaraz play tennis: He will hit shots no one else would dare try, make them, then crack a smile and rile up a crowd by pointing to his ear or raising his fist.

And here’s the thing about trying to beat Carlos Alcaraz at tennis: He is never quite the exact same player, from tournament to tournament, match to match, set to set, game to game, or even point to point, really.

Part of that is because he’s always tying to find ways to improve, including a remodeled serve that has gone from a vulnerability to a strength this year. Part of that is also Alcaraz’s ability, and willingness, to do a bit of everything, even in Sunday’s crucible of a Grand Slam final against his biggest rival and the other Big Thing in men’s tennis right now.

That full bag of tricks and an unmatched athleticism were responsible for the way Alcaraz beat Jannik Sinner 6-2, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 for a second U.S. Open championship, sixth major trophy overall and, as of Monday, a return to No. 1 in the rankings.

“Every player has their styles. My style — it’s about the variety that I have in a match. I feel I can do everything on court, to be honest: slices, drop shots, topspin, flat. I just trust really much in my physical conditions. I feel like I can reach every ball, which give me the confidence and the security of making good points,” said Alcaraz, a 22-year-old from Spain. “Since I was really, really young, I just (had) that feeling of doing everything.”

The victory, Alcaraz’s 10th in their 15 career head-to-head matchups, allowed him to end Sinner’s reign as the champion at Flushing Meadows and his year-plus stay atop the ATP, too.

They are the first two men to play each other in three Grand Slam finals in a row within a season, and after Alcaraz won their matchup at the French Open in June, Sinner triumphed at Wimbledon in July.

From the moment the latter contest ended, Alcaraz and his coach, 2003 French Open champion Juan Carlos Ferrero, focused on finding ways to beat Sinner.

Nothing else really mattered to them. And Sunday’s outcome proved that work was successful.

At least this time.

Asked what makes Alcaraz different from other opponents on tour, Sinner said: “He doesn’t have weaknesses.”

Now it’s Sinner’s turn to make the adjustments with an eye to next year.

One thing the 24-year-old from Italy with four Grand Slam titles figures he needs to add is more of an air of unpredictability, of the sort Alcaraz possesses.

“Carlos does that very well. He might be the best at it. He changes a lot. He goes to the net. He does a drop shot. He hits a slice. I’ll never be like him. I’ll always be the player I am,” Sinner said. “But it is necessary to push me to a zone where I don’t feel comfortable as a player. Then, when you get back in your comfort zone, it lets you be a better player.”

Sinner isn’t far behind, but Alcaraz is as good as it gets in men’s tennis these days.

In 2025, he’s collected more tournament titles, seven, than the number of losses on his 61-6 record.

Since the start of May, Alcaraz is 37-1, the lone setback coming against Sinner for the title at the All England Club.

Now that one’s been accounted for.

Looking at it all through a historical lens, and trying to guess what the future might hold, this is noteworthy: Alcaraz is the second-youngest man to claim major trophy No. 6. He’s about three months older than Björn Borg was when he got No. 6 on the way to his career count of 11.

Alcaraz has two trophies each from the U.S. Open, French Open and Wimbledon; he needs one at the Australian Open, which begins in January, for a career Grand Slam.

“It’s my first goal,” Alcaraz said Sunday night, “to be honest.”

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Howard Fendrich has been the AP’s tennis writer since 2002. Find his stories here: https://apnews.com/author/howard-fendrich. More AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis