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Carlos Alcaraz gets his US Open draw wrong, caught off guard live on air: ‘God, I thought I’d be playing…’
Carlos Alcaraz reached the US Open quarters after a straight-set win against USA's Tommy Paul on Sunday
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Carlos Alcaraz has been on a roll at the 2026 US Open. Despite returning to action for the first time in over four months and playing directly in a Grand Slam tournament without any match practice, the defending champion in New York has cruised into the quarterfinals. However, Alcaraz misread his US Open draw on Sunday, only to realise who his actual opponent in the last eight would be.
After a straight-set win against USA's Tommy Paul in the round of 16 on Arthur Ashe Stadium on Sunday, Alcaraz reckoned his next opponent would be the winner of the match between Daniil Medvedev and Frances Tiafoe. It was only when he sat down for a chat with tennis great Andy Roddick on ABC that he realised he had got his US Open draw wrong.
With the round of 16 match between Ben Shelton and Stefanos Tsitsipas up next, Roddick asked Alcaraz for his thoughts on his potential quarterfinal opponents. There was a pause from the Spaniard before he scratched his head and leaned forward to look at the paper containing the US Open draw.
Roddick then showed him that he would face either Shelton or Tsitsipas next, drawing laughter from the Spaniard. The two other anchors on the show were also left in splits.
"God, I thought I'd be playing against Medvedev or Tiafoe," Alcaraz admitted.
"Surprise, you're welcome!" Roddick told him live on air.
"I hadn't really looked at the draw. I'll definitely watch the match. Tsitsipas is playing very well, he's regaining his confidence. Shelton is also playing very well. I'll watch the match, see who wins, and I'll be ready," Alcaraz said with a smile.
The Murcian beat Paul 6-4, 6-3, 6-4 in his pre-quarterfinal match, before eighth seed Shelton took down a resurgent Tsitsipas 6-2, 6-3, 6-4.
Shelton remains the strongest hope for the home country to produce an American men's Grand Slam champion in more than two decades. In fact, Roddick was the last American man to lift the US Open crown, doing so in 2003. Taylor Fritz came close to ending that long wait in 2024, but he succumbed in straight sets against Jannik Sinner in the final.
Shelton went as far as the semifinals in 2023, where he was stopped by eventual champion Novak Djokovic. He has, however, never beaten Alcaraz, with the Spaniard winning all three of their ATP meetings, including a round-of-16 clash at Roland Garros last year.
