Carlos Alcaraz Dominates to Reach U.S. Open Quarter-Finals

The doubts were supposed to linger. A surgically repaired wrist, five months without the rhythm and grind of competition, a major that often punishes the slightest hesitation.

Carlos Alcaraz tore straight through all of that on Sunday night.

Under the New York lights, the 23-year-old Spaniard produced a ruthless, high-voltage display to dismiss American Tommy Paul 6-4 6-3 6-4 and march into the U.S. Open quarter-finals, stretching his Grand Slam winning streak to 18 matches.

This was not a player testing his limits. This was a player reasserting them.

From “no expectations” to title talk

Alcaraz arrived at Flushing Meadows preaching caution. This was his first serious test since the wrist injury that kept him out for nearly five months, and he framed the fortnight as an exercise in discovery, not destiny.

“At the beginning of the tournament I didn't have any expectations,” he told reporters. “I just came here to see how my body would react, especially my wrist, and above all to enjoy being back competing.”

Four matches later, the tone has shifted. The body has answered every question. The tennis has done the rest.

“After four really good matches, now I feel capable of winning the tournament,” he said, before quickly anchoring himself in the mindset that has carried him through so many big stages. “I still have the same expectations. I still have the same mentality of knowing that every time I step on court is a gift and it is a moment to enjoy.”

The blend is familiar: ambition sharpened by gratitude, swagger softened by perspective. It is also lethal when paired with his level.

Statement win over Paul

Against Paul, Alcaraz played like a man intent on cutting short any home hope of an upset. He controlled the baseline, stepped into returns, and suffocated rallies with that explosive first step and the full repertoire of angles and pace.

The scoreline – 6-4 6-3 6-4 – reflects authority more than drama. When Paul threatened, Alcaraz tightened the screws, not his shoulders. The American had beaten big names before, but he never quite managed to drag the Spaniard into the kind of messy, physical scrap that might have tested the wrist or the patience.

The victory also extended a quirky thread running through Alcaraz’s major career. All three of his previous Grand Slam wins over Paul came in tournaments he went on to win: Wimbledon in 2024, Roland Garros in 2025 and this year’s Australian Open. New York now fits the pattern.

“It makes you happy when you know those things, but it doesn't mean anything,” Alcaraz said. “I always say there is a first time for everything, so let's try to make sure it doesn't happen.”

The superstition is light-hearted, the intent is not.

A familiar stage, a familiar hunger

This is Alcaraz’s fifth U.S. Open quarter-final in six appearances, a remarkable level of consistency for a player still in his early twenties. His comfort in New York is obvious: the noise, the night sessions, the feeling that every match is a show.

“The seven-times Grand Slam champion has looked increasingly comfortable with each round and has now reached the U.S. Open quarter-finals for the fifth time in six appearances,” the numbers say. The eye test agrees. The movement is freer, the forehand heavier, the improvisation back on full display.

“For me it is still a gift to be able to compete once again and play another quarter-final here at the U.S. Open, so I'm going to try to enjoy it and give my best,” he said.

Enjoyment, for Alcaraz, usually looks like domination.

Shelton or Tsitsipas next

Waiting for him in the last eight will be either American Ben Shelton or Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas, two very different threats but with one thing in common: they will have to handle a version of Alcaraz that is growing sharper by the round.

“Both players are going to be very difficult to play against,” he noted, giving nothing away.

The wrist was the story when he arrived in New York. It no longer is. The question now is simpler, and far more daunting for the rest of the field: who is going to stop a fully engaged Carlos Alcaraz over best-of-five on this stage?