Carlos Alcaraz calls for US Open to correct mistake and learn from Wimbledon
Carlos Alcaraz admits that his epic US Open clash with Ben Shelton finished too late and has called for a curfew of sorts at the tournament.
On his first tournament back after more than four months out with a wrist injury, Alcaraz battled Shelton in the quarter-final of the US Open in a five-set thriller.
The contest didn’t begin until after 11pm and its finish time of 3.33am was the latest in the tournament’s history. Although Alcaraz walked off the court with a big smile following his defeat, the Spaniard has now given some constructive criticism for the final major of the year.
On playing so late, he told BBC Sport, “I think it’s too much. The last match people stayed but if that match was played earlier, the court could have been packed. I would like to change the schedule a little with a maximum finish at 11pm or whatever would be better.
“The quarter-final was great – it was a gift for me. I suffered, but I enjoyed and that’s why I smiled when I walked out of the court because I missed that feeling.”
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While it was arguably the match of the tournament, the stadium was half empty by the time Shelton won. Going by Alcaraz’s suggestion, it seems he would rather the US Open follows Wimbledon‘s lead with its 11pm curfew.
That seems unlikely, however. At SW19, the curfew is in place out of consideration for local residents as fans travel home at the end of the day. But none of the other majors have this and the US Open has day and night sessions, so an 11pm finish would be highly unlikely.
Moreover, United States Tennis Association CEO Craig Tiley has called on people to offer suggestions rather than just pointing out the US Open’s faults.
He told Sky Sports earlier this month, “I hear from a lot of people that it finishes too late and then I say, okay, and your suggestion is? I don’t get anything. You can’t control the length of the match.
“While it feels really late, the reality is you’ve got to go and look at the data, But that being said, no one wants to finish at 3.30am in the morning, although the rest of the world in the daytime saw a pretty amazing match.”
But the fact that arguably the biggest name in men’s tennis has said this may lead US Open figureheads into a rethink.
READ MORE: Carlos Alcaraz praised for making ‘super smart’ decision ahead of his return to tennis
