Carlos Alcaraz is the new number 1 in tennis

It was a long and arduous road, especially in the last rounds of the US Open, that the young Spaniard had to walk to end up at the top of international men's tennis and that just at the age of 19. With Jannik Sinner in the quarterfinals and Frances Tiafoe in the semifinals, he had opponents who demanded everything from him and forced him to go through 5 rounds. The quarterfinal against Jannik Sinner was particularly hot and close, when Alcaraz was confronted with a match point and Sinner was already flirting with a place in the semifinals. But the young Alcaraz never gave up and always fought back surprisingly, even if he himself had doubts here and there. Already the 4th round against Marin Cilic dragged on for 5 long, energy-sapping rounds. In the end, it was the tremendous energy in the 19-year-old's shots that finally carried him to victory. His performance was always likeable, as he never appeared arrogant or aggressive, but always reserved but combative.

With his somewhat surprising victory at the US Open, the young Spaniard is finally completing the long-awaited generational change in international tennis. The heyday of Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer seems to be slowly but surely over. And it is not only Alcaraz who represents this generational change, but also his young opponent in the US Open final, 23-year-old Casper Ruud from Norway. They are the ones who, together with players like Stefanos Tsitsipas, Alexander Zverev or Daniil Medvedev, will rewrite the future of tennis.