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Victor Petkov
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Alcaraz shows some magic to breeze past Rinderknech and into US Open 1/4-final
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The Spaniard is now the youngest player in the Open Era to reach 13 Grand Slam quarterfinals

Carlos Alcaraz lit up Arthur Ashe Stadium with one of the shots of the tournament on Sunday, producing a dazzling behind-the-back winner during his U.S. Open fourth-round clash with Arthur Rinderknech.

Early in the first set, with the score level at 2-2, the No. 2 seed found himself seemingly trapped when Rinderknech wrong-footed him at midcourt. But Alcaraz improvised brilliantly, wrapping his racket around his body and flicking the ball up the line. Caught off guard, Rinderknech netted his reply, leaving the Spaniard to flash a wide grin toward his coach Juan Carlos Ferrero before cupping his ear to the crowd in celebration.

Alcaraz went on to take the opening set in a tiebreak after a tight fight and the No. 2 seed altered his return position in the second, dropping deeper to neutralize the Frenchman’s serve. The shift paid off immediately, allowing the Spaniard to dictate rallies with his heavy groundstrokes and ultimately cruise through in two hours and 12 minutes.

The 22-year-old’s triumph marked another milestone: he is now the youngest man in the Open Era to reach 13 Grand Slam quarterfinals. It also continued his dominance in New York, where he has advanced to the last eight in four of his five appearances, including his title run in 2022.

Next up for Alcaraz is 20th seed Jiri Lehecka.