NEW YORK (AP) — Carlos Alcaraz's accidental buzz cut is moving on at the U.S. Open thanks to an easy-as-can-be victory in the second round Wednesday night, a year after he lost at that stage in the Grand Slam tournament.
The No. 2-seeded Alcaraz — who shaved his head after his brother messed up his hair — needed a little more than 1 1/2 hours to beat 65th-ranked Mattia Bellucci of Italy 6-1, 6-0, 6-3 under the lights at Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Alcaraz never faced a break point and accumulated a 32-11
advantage in winners. All in all, a far cry from what happened in the second round at Flushing Meadows in 2024.
Alcaraz went into that one on a 15-match unbeaten run at major tournaments — thanks in large part to titles at the French Open and Wimbledon — but came out on the wrong end of a straight-set defeat against Botic van de Zandschulp.
There never was a chance of that sort of stunner against Bellucci.
“Yeah, I played great, to be honest,” said Alcaraz, who earned the first of his five Grand Slam titles at the U.S. Open in 2022. “Today wasn't his day. I tried to make the most of his mistakes.”
He and No. 1 Jannik Sinner have combined to win the past seven major trophies.
___
More AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis
