Winning a US Open may be an Italian’s job

When it comes to the US Open, don’t take Carlos Alcaraz’s appearance in the final for granted - a heck of a player may be waiting for him in the quarters.

Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz (R) greets Italy’s Jannik Sinner at the net after their US Open quarter-final last year. Picture: AFP.

I’ve had one conversation with Carlos Alcaraz.

It went like this. Me: “Go get ’em, mate.” Alcaraz: “Que?”

Pretty funny for a couple of reasons. Firstly, because I very much felt like the village idiot. I was walking along a corridor inside Arthur Ashe Stadium. There’s mazes inside mazes down there. You could get lost for a week. I was looking for the media cafe and the largest hot dogs known to humankind. Became hopelessly lost. Wound up in a corridor leading to the court. Which wasn’t far from the players locker room. When I bumbled around a corner near the John McEnroe posters, I literally bumped into a sprightly young bloke who was playing Jannik Sinner later that night.

I felt like I should say something. It’d be rude not to. Awkward. I couldn’t think of anything. Then a rather Australian phrase burst from my lips. Four words that clearly made no sense to a Spaniard. His was a fair inquiry on his part. He squinted and stared at me like I was speaking a foreign language. Which I guess I was. He looked at me like Manuel looked at Basil Fawlty. What are you talking about?! He was with Juan Carlos Ferrero, his coach. They went on their merry way. Go get ‘em against Sinner, was what I meant. Hope you win the tournament. You’re a ripper. And so forth. All lost in translation. I slinked off feeling foolish and then Alcaraz called out to me. He pointed at his head, pointed at mine. I was wearing a yellow bucket hat that had a dozen smiley faces on it.

He laughed like he’d never come across anyone so idiotic in all his life. Some bozo stumbling around the corridors in a stupid hat saying things like go get ’em, mate. He pointed at my hat again and gave a thumbs up. He walked away, back arched, roaring with more laughter. That night, he played one of the greatest matches I have ever seen, beating Sinner 6-3 6-7 (7-9) 6-7 (0-7) 7-5 6-3. They finished at 2.50am on one of those crazy New York evenings/mornings when you have never felt so knackered and never felt more alive.

A rocket ship of a match. The shotmaking was extreme. Their fitness was off the charts. The skill was insane. They covered a 23.77m x 8.23m tennis court like it was a 2.74m x 1.525m ping pong table. “Honestly, I still don‘t know how I did it,” Alcaraz said before tossing his shoes into the crowd and signing autographs until the sun came up. “You have to believe in yourself.”

No way did I go to his press conference. It was nearly time for breakfast and regardless, I was too embarrassed he’d recognise me. As the clown in the yellow bucket hat, with a dozen smiley faces, talking gibberish about going and getting ‘em.

But in hindsight, that match in the Big Apple last year made the Spaniard. Turned his career. He was down a match point, saved it with complete fearlessness. He had the masses on their feet. It was a certified thriller and the unveiling of the sport’s next superstar.

Alcaraz had everything. Flair. Charisma. Joy. Enthusiasm. Crazy talent. He would win a major some day and it didn’t take long. By the end of the week, he was the US Open champion. But it was difficult to escape the thought … it could have been Sinner. So easily. His best was every bit as good as Alcaraz’s.

Now? Alcaraz is the 20-year-old Wimbledon champion and world No.1. What of Sinner since New York did what New York invariably does at 2.50am – breaks your heart and spits you out? He’s going all right. The 22-year-old Italian is the world No.6. He’s won two titles this year, including the Masters 1000 event at the Canadian Open, smoking Australia’s Alex de Minaur in the final.

He’s cruised through the opening two rounds at Flushing Meadows and while everyone is gaga for the prospect of Alcaraz versus Novak Djokovic in the final – let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves. I’m not convinced Alcaraz will get there.

He probably will, but before the championship match is the likelihood of Alcaraz versus Sinner in the quarter-finals. At the time of writing, he hadn’t even played his second round against Lloyd Harris, but a rematch against Sinner is one to salivate over. There’s the future of men’s tennis, assuming Djokovic doesn’t do a Ken Rosewall and play until he’s 46.

I have a sneaking suspicion Sinner will go mightily close to spoiling the Alcaraz-Djokovic storyline and then giving the title itself a shake. More understated and silky than wrecking-ball Alcaraz, he’s a heck of a player, a craftsman, coming off a deliciously classy 6-4 6-2 6-4 win over countryman Lorenzo Sonego, who ain’t no weekend hacker.

“A great performance,” Sinner said after starting at 11am and being done in time for lunch. “I felt very good on court. Very happy. It‘s important to get through, and if you can get through in three sets each time, this is better. You have more time to recover. Playing first today helps the recovery because today I have a full day basically, and also tomorrow. If you play a night match, it is a little bit different. You have less time to recover. But if you win like this, a little bit over two hours, in a morning match, it’s a good start for the Open and hopefully I can keep going.”

He adds: “It’s going to be very, very tough from here. I’m very looking forward to it but the start of the tournament is never easy, no? You have to understand a little bit the situation. I have played twice on this court (Arthur Ashe Stadium) now, so I know how this court is. The confidence is building, no? Every round you play, you feel you are in the tournament now, it’s a good feeling. Hopefully I can keep going like this.”

Every tennis fan, including ones with laptops and yellow bucket hats with a dozen smiley faces, hopes so, too. Because if Alcaraz and Sinner reach the last eight, we’ll get another blast of ping pong.

Here’s an interesting tennis stat. Pros win only about 55 per cent of their baseline rallies. A surprisingly small number, no? They succeed on about 65 per cent of net points. Which is what Sinner is trying to do. Get forward. Get volleying. Having grown up skidding around the baseline on clay courts, only approaching the net to shake hands, he finished 24 points at the net against Sonego, winning 21 of them. He’s ventured forward 50 times in two matches. Que? Unheard of for him.

“I know physically I’m healthy, which is most important,” he says. “Then we will see how it goes”