Overview

• Carlos Alcaraz defeated Reilly Opelka 6-4, 7-5, 6-4 on Arthur Ashe Stadium, saving all three break points he faced and extending his record to 19-0 in Grand Slam first rounds.
• The No. 2 seed debuted a shaved head, saying he struggled with a prior haircut and later explaining his brother misused the clippers, leaving shaving as the only fix.
• Rory McIlroy met Alcaraz courtside, felt the stubble, and asked “Why this?” as friend Frances Tiafoe called the look “terrible.”
• On the broadcast, John McEnroe quipped the buzz cut looked like a $20 job, and Maria Sharapova described it as low maintenance.
• Alcaraz polled the crowd about the haircut during his on-court interview, mimed a golf swing in a nod to McIlroy, and will face Italy’s Mattia Bellucci in round two.