RETCH POINT

Tennis Champ Throws Up in Historic U.S. Open Defeat

Carlos Alcaraz went into his final set against Ben Shelton feeling a little under the weather.

Reigning U.S. Open champion Carlos Alcaraz threw up as he was knocked out in the quarter-finals by American player Ben Shelton. The pair faced off in a four-and-a-half-hour showdown, playing from 11 p.m. until just after 3.33 a.m. on Wednesday—the latest finish in tournament history. Shelton’s victory puts an end to Alcaraz’s 18-match win streak at Grand Slams. It was Alcaraz’s first Slam since suffering a wrist injury in April, and he appeared to be struggling as he vomited before the start of the fifth set. The match ended 6-7 (5), 6-1, 6-3, 1-6, 7-6 (10-7). Shelton, 23, chalked his victory up to getting a boost from playing at the Arthur Ashe Stadium in his hometown of Queens, New York City. “It’s incredible,” he said. “I always say that this is the greatest sports city in the world… that this is the greatest stadium in the world. I’m just hoping that my best friend and my sister over there don’t have to be at work at 6 a.m. in three hours.” The American will now play compatriot Frances Tiafoe in the semi-final, guaranteeing an American will make the final. The last American man to win a Grand Slam was Andy Roddick at the U.S. Open in 2003.