Carlos Alcaraz of Spain has won his maiden Grand Slam championship and holds the record for tennis' youngest player to achieve the top spot in the world rankings.
The 19-year-old defeated Casper Ruud of Norway 6-4, 2-6, 7-6, 6-3 in Sunday's US Open final.Alcaraz is the first US Open champion since Pete Sampras in 1990 and the first Grand Slam men's champion since Rafael Nadal at the 2005 French Open.
Alcaraz, who collapsed to his back and clasped his hands to his face after winning the match, stated, "This is something that I dreamed of since I was a kid – to be number one in the world, to be a champion of a Grand Slam."
He then clambered over photographers and into the audience so he could celebrate in his team's box.
"I really, truly worked hard to achieve this. Lots of emotions are making it difficult to speak right now.Alcaraz took Daniil Medvedev's place at the top of the rankings after thrilling spectators during the two-week competition in New York with his acrobatic play.
He surpasses Lleyton Hewitt, who established the previous record in 2001 at the age of 20, and becomes the youngest world number one since the ATP rankings' inception in 1973.
Alcaraz, who also holds the record for the longest period of play at a single Grand Slam competition, had a challenging road to the title.
The more than 13 hours it took him to play three consecutive five-setter matches to advance to the final took up the most of the 23 hours and 40 minutes.In the championship round of a Grand Slam or any other tournament, I always emphasize that there is no place for fatigue, Alcaraz stated. You must give everything you own.Nadal, a fellow Spaniard, welcomed the player who is regarded as his likely successor.
"Congratulations @carlosalcaraz for your first Grand Slam and for number 1," he tweeted. "I am sure there will be many more.
Ruud was attempting to overtake Alcaraz as the first Norwegian, but he was unable to equal his strength.
A finalist at the French Open when he was beaten by Nadal, Ruud is now second in the world from number seven.
"Tonight was a significant occasion for Carlos and myself. We were aware of the stakes, Rudd added.The second option isn't that bad either. I'll keep striving to get both the number one rating in the world and my maiden Grand Slam.
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