Carlos Alcaraz regains his freedom with exhilarating US Open win | Tumaini Carayol

The teenager came to New York burdened by pressure of his rapid success but leaves as champion and world No 1

Just one month ago, as the tennis tours swung to the North American hard court season at the beginning of August, Carlos Alcaraz was feeling burdened by his rapid success. The early stages of his rise had seemed so easy - he won big titles for fun, outperformed the likes of Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal, and the Spaniard flew up the rankings with a smile on his face. But now he was dealing with the baggage that accompanied his rise. The pressure and expectations, the shiny new target on his back.

While Alcaraz put on a brave face and rolled with the punches during those events, he spoke frankly as he sat with the US Open trophy by his side and looked back on the past few months. I lost the joy a little bit," he said. I felt the pressure. I couldn't smile on-court which I'm doing in every match, every tournament."