‘I felt great’: Carlos Alcaraz returns to US Open after 139 days with wrist injury

Carlos Alcaraz of Spain celebrates winning his match against Roman Safiullin of Russia. (AP photo) NEW YORK CITY: After two hours and 21 minutes at Arthur Ashe, Carlos Alcaraz’s game answered the big question surrounding his long-awaited return to tennis.The 23-year-old Spaniard, playing his first match in 139 days after injuring his wrist in mid-April, took on Russian Roman Safiullin at the US Open. He pounded the ball, pulled off impossible shots and collected shots from the laces, turning defenses into delicate winners on his way to a convincing 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 win.Alcaraz opened his final serve game with a volley winner, stroked inches above the ground, then turned to the crowd and called for love, hand to ear. The audience booed and Alcaraz’s smile lit up the sun.The second seed underlined that he played without pain.“I felt great. I don’t know what it looked like from the outside, but inside I felt like I was hitting the ball normally. I was playing pretty normal, I was playing my style and the wrist was great. I’ll still take care of it, of course, I’m really happy that it’s finally pain-free,” he told international media.The defending champion arrived on court in a dark brown, almost espresso ensemble, a warmer alternative to black in the fashion world. Alcaraz removed his shirt to reveal an oversized ombré sleeveless tank top paired with brown shorts lined with thick white trim. A tight headband held his unruly mop in place. A white compression sleeve covered the preventative tape on his wrist.In a closely fought match where Alcaraz seemed to be doing just fine, he hit 28 winners, 20 of them from the forehand. Facing six break points, Safiullin converted only one. The 23-year-old converted four of the seven break points he earned, a difference that proved decisive.The second seed hit on his returns but was more controlled on his serve. Alcaraz, who likes to hit 130 mph, hit a top speed of 128 in the first round. His first and second serve averages were 113 and 97, respectively.“The serve is the stroke I’ve had the most trouble with,” he said, adding: “There are some players who like to return serve at 130 miles, and when you serve a little slower, they struggle a little bit. So most of that speed (generated) is because of him (the opponent). It was a certain tactic.”“I always struggle with the serve, but it will definitely come back,” he said.For the seven-time major winner, who will meet 23-year-old Jaime Faria of Portugal in the second round on Tuesday, the biggest shift may have been mental.“It was a difficult day for me, but at the same time a really beautiful day,” he said. “I was really nervous. Really, really nervous, but also just happy because for me, my goal here is to compete, enjoy myself and see how my body reacts after the games.”Alcaraz explained, “I forgot what match day was like. I was warming up and I don’t really remember what I was doing in warming up. To get that feeling back. That’s why I was really nervous because I kind of forgot about the competition.”“I don’t know how far I’ll go in the tournament,” he admitted, “but what I really want to do is enjoy myself every time I go on the court, feel the energy from the people, feel the competition. That’s why I enjoyed today so much.”