WATCH: Dejected Dan Evans flings his racquet at the net in frustration after Carlos Alcaraz steals point with near-impossible passing shot at US Open
Carlos Alcaraz showed his grit to progress to the fourth round of the 2023 US Open after getting past Dan Evans of Great Britain.
The young Spaniard faced a bit of a hitch in the third round in New York as Evans forced him to work hard to earn the victory. Alcaraz won the first two sets without much trouble, but Evans surprised the crowd at Arthur Ashe Stadium by taking the third set. However, the No. 26 seeded Brit did not have enough to take another set off of Alcaraz, as the No. 1 seed won the contest 6-2, 6-3, 4-6, 6-3.
The match featured several mindblowing moments that tennis fans have come to expect from Alcaraz, and one of them truly left Evans in shock. During a point in the final set, the 20-year-old lost his footing while returning a deep ball from Evans on the left corner of the baseline. While he managed to somehow return the ball, Evans redirected it to the rightmost corner. And just as the Brit thought the point was over, Alcaraz showed his incredible court coverage to smash a passing shot down the line, which just clipped the baseline to steal the point away.
The crowd, expectedly, went wild over the Spaniard's athleticism. On the other hand, Evans was in complete shock and flung his racket into the net in frustration after losing what appeared to be an almost certain point just seconds earlier.
Carlos Alcaraz to clash with Matteo Arnaldi in fourth round at US Open
Carlos Alcaraz's quest to defend his US Open crown will next see him take on Matteo Arnaldi of Italy in the fourth round on Monday, August 4. This will be the first time both the players will face each other. Arnaldi stunned No. 16 seed Cameron Norrie to progress into the second week of a Grand Slam for the first time in his career.
Earlier, Arnaldi won against Jason Kubler and labored past another impressive young player, Arthur Fils, before bettering Norrie. Carlos Alcaraz, meanwhile, began his campaign in New York with victories over Dominik Koepfer and Lloyd Harris. The clash against Evans in the third round was the first real test of Alcaraz's mettle, and he would look to continue his fiery form to defend his title.
The Spaniard is the heavy favorite to down Arnaldi and enter the quarterfinals. Carlos Alcaraz has only lost 6 matches in 2023 so far, and in New York, his record is even more fearsome. The reigning Wimbledon champion has only lost one match at the US Open, the quarterfinal in 2021, where he retired in the second set against Felix Auger-Aliassime.