Carlos Alcaraz Dominates Tommy Paul in US Open Match

Carlos Alcaraz arrived in New York with more questions than matches. Four months out with a right wrist injury, no tournaments since Barcelona, and a draw that threw a dangerous, in‑form Tommy Paul at him in the fourth round.

By the end of a two-hour, 20-minute night at Arthur Ashe Stadium, there was only one story: Alcaraz is back, and his forehand is terrifying people who know what they’re looking at.

Stine’s Half-Joke, Full Compliment

Paul’s coach, Brad Stine, has been around the sport long enough not to be easily impressed. Yet after Alcaraz’s 6-4, 6-3, 6-4 win, the veteran coach could barely believe what he’d just seen from the other side of the net.

“Carlos's forehand was absolutely astounding,” Stine told Tennis Channel, before leaning into a line that captured the mood of the night. “I actually said yesterday to a couple of people. I want to have them do drug testing on that racket.”

He didn’t stop there.

“I think there's something. I think that racket's juiced. It's got to be juiced. It can't be him, can it? Because every time he touches the ball with that racket, it just goes. It comes off like a cannon.”

It was a joke, of course, but it came from a place of resignation. Paul had arrived with genuine belief, armed with a recent win over Alexander Zverev at the Cincinnati Open and a history of pushing – and occasionally beating – Alcaraz. None of that mattered once the Spaniard found his range.

A Champion in Full Flow

Alcaraz has now dropped just one set in his first four matches at this US Open. For a player supposedly short of rhythm after a long layoff, he has looked anything but rusty. The ball is exploding off his strings, the movement is back to its elastic best, and the swagger that carried him to multiple majors has returned to center stage.

Paul tried to unsettle him with changes of pace and court position, but Alcaraz kept stepping in, taking time away, turning neutral balls into outright winners with that forehand Stine couldn’t stop talking about. The scoreline – 6-4, 6-3, 6-4 – felt about right: competitive, but never truly in doubt.

This was not just another win in a defending champion’s campaign. It was a reminder of the gap he can open when he’s healthy.

A Bit of History on the Side

The victory carried a quirky slice of history as well. By beating Paul in New York, Alcaraz has now defeated the American at all four Grand Slam tournaments, becoming only the 10th man in the Open Era to beat the same opponent at each of the majors.

Their rivalry is already one of the tour’s most frequent matchups. Sunday’s encounter was their ninth meeting, and Alcaraz now leads the head-to-head 7-2. The last time they faced off at a Slam, at the 2026 Australian Open, Alcaraz also won in straight sets on his way to the title.

Paul knows exactly what he’s up against. Before this latest chapter, he summed it up bluntly:

“I think I've played him more than anybody on tour, for me, which is kind of crazy. But yeah, we've had some good matches. One really bad beatdown at the French Open. But he's the test. Him and Sinner; they've been playing great.”

On Arthur Ashe, that “test” felt closer to an exam with no right answers.

Shelton Awaits Under the Lights

The reward for Alcaraz’s clean, ruthless march through the Round of 16 is another all-American challenge: Ben Shelton in the quarterfinals. The match is set for the night session on Tuesday, September 8, at 7:00 p.m. ET.

Shelton will bring the noise, the serve, and the crowd. He’ll bring the belief, too, the kind that comes naturally when a young American walks into a primetime slot in New York.

Alcaraz will bring something else – a forehand that has rival coaches half-joking about racket tests and opponents wondering how, exactly, you stop a shot that “comes off like a cannon.”

If this is how he looks after four months out, what happens when the wrist – and the rest of his game – fully settles into gear?