From the moment world No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz lifted the Wimbledon trophy after defeating Novak Djokovic in an epic five-set thriller in July,
tennis fans have been manifesting a rematch in New York. And for most of the past two weeks, their meeting in Sunday's US Open final seemed inevitable.
Djokovic did his part Friday, taking the first semifinal in straight sets over American Ben Shelton 6-3, 6-2, 7-6 (4) and booking his spot in the final.
But 2021 US Open champion Daniil Medvedev had other plans and ended the 20-year-old's run toward a second-straight US Open title with a 7-6 (3), 6-1, 3-6, 6-3 win in Friday's second semifinal.
With the victory, Medvedev set up a rematch of his own against Djokovic, who he defeated here two years ago to win his first and only major title.
So, what went wrong for Spain's Carlos Alcaraz? Here are four takeaways from his exit.