Carlos Alcaraz beats Roman Safiullin in straight sets in US Open return
Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz defeated Roman Safiullin 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 in New York, marking his first singles match in 139 days following a wrist injury.
Straight-set victory at Arthur Ashe
Carlos Alcaraz began his US Open title defense on Monday with a 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 victory over Roman Safiullin of Russia at Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York. The world No. 3 required two hours and 22 minutes to complete the first-round match, delivering over 20 forehand winners and recording nine fewer unforced errors than his 99th-ranked opponent. The fixture represented Alcaraz's first official singles encounter in 139 days following a wrist injury that kept him off the ATP Tour since mid-April. Wearing a sleeveless basketball-style shirt, a headband, and a compression sleeve over his right arm, the 23-year-old opened with an early double fault before stabilizing his baseline game. Safiullin managed only one service break across the three sets, converting early in the second set before Alcaraz broke back in the third game when Safiullin sent a volley wide.
Recovery from right wrist tenosynovitis
The Spaniard had been sidelined since 14 April 2026, when he sustained a right wrist injury during a match against Otto Virtanen at the Conde de Godó tournament in Barcelona. Medical evaluations identified tenosynovitis, an inflammation involving fluid accumulation in the sheath protecting a key tendon in the wrist. Due to the cautious recovery timeline established by his team, Alcaraz withdrew from the French Open one month before the event and pulled out of Wimbledon nearly six weeks before its start. A planned mid-August return at the Cincinnati Open was also cancelled roughly one week before competition began. Alcaraz subsequently completed a competitive test in mixed doubles at Flushing Meadows, pairing with Serena Williams to win one match and lose one.
- Sustains right wrist injury against Otto Virtanen in Barcelona
- Pulls out of Roland Garros one month before the tournament
- Withdraws from Wimbledon nearly six weeks prior to start
- Cancels scheduled return one week before the Cincinnati Open
- Competes in mixed doubles with Serena Williams as wrist test
- Defeats Roman Safiullin in straight sets in US Open first round
It's pain free right now, I felt great. I don't know how it looked from outside, but, you know, from inside, my feeling was that I was hitting normal. I was playing pretty normal, playing my style.
Routine disruptions and technical observations
The prolonged absence created disruptions in Alcaraz's match-day routines. Staying at the Lotte New York Palace in Manhattan, Alcaraz acknowledged feeling elevated anxiety on Monday morning and experienced confusion regarding his pre-match warmup sequences. After the match, rather than completing his customary 15 minutes on a stationary bike and showering before press obligations, he went directly to the media room in his playing attire. On court, his groundstrokes remained potent, though his serve registered roughly 20 kilometres per hour below its pre-injury velocity. Former Spanish player Álex Corretja observed on El Larguero that managing mental tension and concentration during competitive points represented the central hurdle of the comeback.
It has incalculable merit to be out of competition for so many months, play on the first day, not drop a single set and barely face trouble.
Draw dynamics and title defense path
Monday's result extended Alcaraz's Grand Slam singles match winning streak to 15, dating back to his 2025 US Open title and his February 2026 victory at the Australian Open. The 23-year-old moves into a second-round match on Wednesday against Portugal's Jaime Faria. Alcaraz is aiming to become the first man to defend the US Open singles championship since Roger Federer won five consecutive titles between 2004 and 2008. The tournament draw opened without world No. 1 Jannik Sinner due to injury, while 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic suffered a first-round defeat on Sunday night.
