The two multi-time Grand Slam champs’ major run in 2024 has come to an unceremonious end.
In a total stunner, the last two champions of the U.S. Open tournament in men’s singles have both been eliminated prior to the event’s fourth round.
Four-time Grand Slam champion Carlos Alcaraz, who won in 2022, fell 6-1, 7-5, 6-4 to Dutchman Botic van de Zandschulp, the world No. 74, on Thursday. Alcaraz, 21, had won the year’s previous two majors (the French Open and Wimbledon).
On Friday, 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic, who won the event in 2023, was eliminated in the third round by Australian Alexei Popyrin, the No. 28-ranked player in the world, in four sets, 6-4, 6-4, 2-6, 6-4. Along with Alcaraz, Djokovic was viewed as another tournament favorite.
Djokovic, winner of the most Grand Slams in men’s tennis history, will now finish the year major-less for the first time since 2017.
Per Matthew Futterman of The Athletic, the Serbian superstar was deeply upset with his performance in New York.
