Carlos Alcaraz captured his sixth Grand Slam title and second US Open crown on Sunday when he toppled defending tournament champion Jannik Sinner, 6-2, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 in Flushing Meadows. 

It was Alcaraz’s first US Open title since 2022. 

Tennis fans got the showdown befitting of a final between the world No. 1 Sinner and world No. 2 Alcaraz, with the Italian battling back from championship point in the fourth set to put Alcaraz on his heels for a moment. 

But the Spaniard slammed home a shot with Sinner out of position to serve for championship point before taking the title on the following serve. 

The crowd at Arthur Ashe Stadium erupted and Alcaraz celebrated.

“Every achievement that I have is because of you,” Alcaraz said to his team during the trophy ceremony.

“This tournament is super special for me,” he added. “It’s a privilege to be a part of this tournament. I just feel at home, feel the energy and feel the love, and I’m just trying to play my best for you guys. You made everything easy.”

Prior to Sunday, Alcaraz had not dropped a set through six matches in Queens during this year’s U.S. Open. That run came when Sinner evened the match in the second set.

President Donald Trump sat in a sponsor’s suite in Arthur Ashe Stadium and received a mix of cheers and boos when he offered a wave beforehand and again when he was shown on videoboards after the first set.

The match’s start was delayed by about a half-hour because thousands of fans were still outside in line, trying to get through the extra security measures in place because of the presence of a sitting president at the tournament for the first time since Bill Clinton in 2000.

Perhaps the extra wait got the No. 1-seeded Sinner, who was the defending champion.

Right from the beginning under a closed roof because of rain earlier in the day, No. 2 Alcaraz was better as he sought to reverse the result from when they met at Wimbledon less than two months ago.

He did just that, putting his leads over Sinner at 10-5 in their head-to-head series, 6-4 in major trophies, and 2-1 in U.S. Open championships.

“You were better than me,” Sinner said. “I tried my best today. I couldn’t do more.”

Plus, this win allowed Alcaraz, a 22-year-old from Spain, to take away the No. 1 ranking from Sinner, a 24-year-old from Italy.

These two guys are so, so much better than the rest of men’s tennis at the moment.

They have combined to collect the past eight Slam trophies in a row, and 10 of 13. Novak Djokovic, whom Alcaraz eliminated in Friday’s semifinals, took the other three in that span.

“I’m seeing you more than my family,” Alcaraz joked, which got a smile out of Sinner. “It’s great to share the court, to share the locker rooms, everything.”

Sunday’s showdown represented the first time in tennis history that the same two men played each other in three consecutive Slam finals within a single season.

— With AP