We knew it, this final of the US Open would lead to a double dose of happiness for its winner. Carlos Alcaraz is therefore this one after getting the better of Casper Ruud in four sets on Sunday night. The cake is obviously this first major title. It would not have been less beautiful, less striking, nor less moving without this place of world number one. But the cherry is damn pretty, too.
If this seizure of power could initially be only ephemeral as the gaps are narrow at the top, it remains no less historic. At 19 years, 4 months and 7 days, Alcaraz will become Monday the youngest number one since the creation of the ATP ranking in 1973. The Spaniard does not only beat this record. He pulverizes it. Never a player under 20 had settled at the top of the hierarchy. The previous record was owned by Lleyton Hewitt, number one for the first time at 20 years and almost 9 months.
US Open
Long live King Alcaraz!
10 HOURS AGO
A winning last serve and immeasurable joy: Alcaraz’s historic match point
The youth in power
This is all the more impressive as the time has been rather aging for the elite of men’s tennis over the past ten years. Not long ago, the Top 10 was almost exclusively monopolized by thirtysomethings. Youth pushed (Alexander Zverev was world No. 3 at 20), Jannik Sinner also performed very well very early on, but it is almost paradoxical that the youngest number one in history arises in our time. One more sign, if needed, which testifies to the extraordinary side of Juan Carlos Ferrero’s protege.
Of course, his accession to the throne was accelerated by certain circumstances. Starting with the fact that over the past 52 weeks, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal have only been able to play intermittently. The Serb has only played nine tournaments over this period, the Spaniard ten. We can discuss, when there is still time, whether Carlos Alcaraz is already indisputably the best player in the world. But he is the world number one and, frankly, this costume suits him perfectly.
The 28 world number ones
| Nom | Pays | Date |
| Ilie Năstase | Romania | 23/08/1973 |
| John Newcombe | Australia | 03/06/1974 |
| Jimmy Connors | UNITED STATES | 29/07/1974 |
| Björn Borg | Sweden | 23/08/1977 |
| John McEnroe | UNITED STATES | 03/03/1980 |
| Ivan Lendl | Czechoslovakia | 28/02/1983 |
| Mats Wilander | Sweden | 12/09/1988 |
| Stefan Edberg | Sweden | 13/08/1990 |
| Boris Becker | Germany | 17/02/1991 |
| Jim Courier | UNITED STATES | 10/02/1992 |
| Pete Sampras | UNITED STATES | 12/04/1993 |
| Andre Agassi | UNITED STATES | 10/04/1995 |
| Thomas Muster | Austria | 12/02/1996 |
| Marcelo Rios | Chili | 30/03/1998 |
| Carlos Moya | Spain | 15/03/1999 |
| Yevgeny Kafelnikov | Russia | 03/05/1999 |
| Patrick Rafter | Australia | 02/08/1999 |
| Marat Safe | Russia | 20/11/2000 |
| Gustavo Kuerten | Brazil | 04/12/2000 |
| Lleyton Hewitt | Australia | 19/11/2001 |
| John Charles Ferrero | Spain | 08/09/2003 |
| Andy Roddick | UNITED STATES | 03/11/2003 |
| Roger Federer | Suisse | 02/02/2004 |
| Rafael Nadal | Spain | 18/08/2008 |
| Novak Djokovic | Serbia | 04/07/2011 |
| Andy Murray | Britain | 07/11/2016 |
| Daniil Medvedev | Russia | 28/02/2022 |
| Carlos Alcaraz | Spain | 12/09/2022 |
US Open
LIVE: Follow the final between Casper Ruud and Carlos Alcaraz
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US Open
Alcaraz – Ruud: Only one will touch the Grail and sit on the throne
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