Carlos Alcaraz's Fashion Shift at US Open 2023

NEW YORK – Carlos Alcaraz walked back onto Arthur Ashe Stadium on Sept 4 looking a little more covered up and a lot more amused by the fuss he’d created.

The tennis was routine. The outfit was not.

After two rounds of US Open chatter about his loose, brown Travis Scott x Cactus Jack Nike tank top – a cut so generous it kept sliding and flashing his chest – the Spaniard added a white undershirt for his third‑round win over China’s Wu Yibing.

The memes had been relentless. So had the jokes. Former WTA player Eugenie Bouchard even chimed in, telling him to “put the nip away”.

Alcaraz heard it all.

“I think I’ve been seeing too much of my nipples lately,” he told reporters with a laugh after his 6-3, 6-4, 6-1 victory.

This wasn’t a Nike directive or a stylist’s intervention. The change came from him.

“I feel really comfortable with another shirt. So I think I’m going to stay like that,” the 23-year-old said, sounding as relaxed about his wardrobe as he looked about his tennis.

Beneath the light-hearted tone sits a serious campaign. Alcaraz is back at Flushing Meadows after more than four months out with a wrist injury, and he has slipped into gear with barely a jolt. Through three rounds he has dropped just one set, moving with the easy aggression that made him a force at the majors.

Wu felt that weight. Once Alcaraz settled, the gap in class widened quickly, the scoreline racing away in straight sets as the night session crowd leaned into the spectacle.

Next Challenge

Now comes a different kind of test.

Next up is American 20th seed Tommy Paul, a player Alcaraz has solved five times in a row but never takes lightly.

“He's a really talented player, really difficult one to play,” Alcaraz said. “I think he’s really dangerous for everyone on the tour. I’m really looking forward to playing him once again.”

The fashion story may have cooled with the arrival of that plain white undershirt. The tennis story is only just heating up.