CHARLESTON, S.C. – – Too bad Carlos Alcaraz ran into his almost entire 2026 game weakening at this U.S. Open. The Spaniard wasn’t his old self.
And he hadn’t had time to pull his game totally together when he met the fireball known as Ben Shelton.
As it turned out, the soon to-be 24-year-old Shelton was too strong and powerful, with an add-on leap ability. Hopefully, Alcaraz will be ready for Down Under at the start of 2027.
Maybe, it was the heavy outfit and new hair attack that seemed to slow Alcaraz down for Shelton’s attack from all sides. Or maybe, it was just too late in the night for the usually great and fan favorite Alcaraz.
But the 6-7 (5), 6-1, 6-3, 1-6, 7-6 (7) loss to Shelton probably will affect more than just the future of Alcaraz, even if the Spaniard happens to be younger than Shelton. Alcaraz won’t reach age 24 until May 2027.
Of course, Shelton still has to prove that Tuesday night’s performance was the real thing.
An expected win by Shelton in the semifinals over Frances Tiafoe probably won’t prove much.
But an expected championship match pitting Shelton against tall German Alexander Zverev would tell the tale of 2026 for both Shelton and Zverev.
Watch out for the injury-prone old gang, Alcaraz and Italian Jannik Sinner, in 2027 along with Zverev.
And Shelton? It’s an open case.
On to the women.
I was hoping there would be an opening at the top of the women’s game for long-time Charleston-based Emma Navarro.
Emma played her heart out in the quarterfinals against Jessica Pegula. But the veteran Pegula came through with her consistency in the second and third sets for a 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 victory over Emma.
Of course, Pegula is likely to run into trouble as usual against Aryna Sabalenka in the semifinals. It’s just if Sabalenka’s big game is working, no one will have an easy victory over her.
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James Beck was the 2003 winner of the USTA National Media Award for print media. A 1995 MBA graduate of The Citadel, he can be reached at Jamesbecktennis@gmail.com.
