Carlos Alcaraz’s haircut rather than his tennis was the talk of the US Open as the second seed eased into round two in New York.
The Spaniard arrived at Flushing Meadows on Monday ahead of his clash with Reilly Opelka looking almost unrecognisable after shaving his head.
After impressing in a 6-4 7-5 6-4 victory, Alcaraz quizzed the crowd on his new look, earning loud cheers when he said: “I’ve got to ask to the people if they like the new haircut or not. Do you like it guys? I think they like it.”
Alcaraz’s friend and rival Frances Tiafoe did not approve, though, with the American seen behind the scenes appraising the lack of locks.
“It’s definitely terrible,” said Tiafoe. “He’s my guy though. It’s funny, I looked at him and I was like, ‘I guess you’re aerodynamic’. I don’t know who told him that it’s good. I don’t know who told him to do that, but it’s terrible.”
In his press conference, Alcaraz revealed the real reason behind the cut, saying: “I felt like my hair was really long already, and before the tournament I just really wanted to get a haircut.
“My brother, he misunderstood with the machine. He just cut it. Then the only way to fix it is just shave it off. It’s not that bad, I guess.”
Alcaraz flew his barber Victor Martinez from Spain to Paris earlier this year to give him a more fashionable fade cut midway through the French Open but said New York was too far for a similar intervention.
The new style had divided opinion, the French Open champion added. “Some people like it, some people don’t like it,” he said.
“To be honest, I’m just laughing about the reaction of the people. It is what it is. I can’t do anything else right now, so I’m just laughing about everything they are saying about my haircut.”
Alcaraz said he was unsure if his new streamlined style made him faster on court but said it would all be academic in a few days given how fast his hair grew.
“Every time that I get a haircut, in two or three days it’s gone,” he said. “In three days you’re going to see another hair(style).”
Among those critical of the new trim was American world number 17 Tiafoe, who, despite sporting a close-cropped style himself, described Alcaraz’s new haircut as “horrendous”.
“Frances is lying. Frances is lying,” laughed Alcaraz. “No, come on? He showed up here saying that it is terrible? I know he’s lying. I know he likes the haircut. He likes it. He told me.”
There were only positive reviews, though, for Alcaraz’s performance on court as he impressively maintained his record of never having lost in the opening round of a grand slam.
Alcaraz seized his opportunities when they came on Opelka’s fearsome serve, avoiding the possible danger of tie-breaks to set up a meeting with Italian Mattia Bellucci.
After clinching victory, Alcaraz used his racket to perform a golf swing – a nod to the watching Rory McIlroy.
“Today was a really difficult one,” he said. “Really tough player, tough serve. I couldn’t get the rhythm that I wanted to get but really happy with everything I’ve done today. Overall I think I did a really great performance tonight.”
