Why world No.1 Carlos Alcaraz was rubbing a mystery substance into his skin during his big quarterfinal win over Alexander Zverev at the US Open
- Alcaraz rubbed sawdust onto his arms
- Heat has been stifling at the US Open
- Medvedev warned that a player will die
Top seed Carlos Alcaraz has rubbed an unkown substance onto his arms in his quarter-final battle with Alexander Zverev on Wednesday night at the US Open.
The Spaniard cruised past Zverev 6-3 6-2 6-4 and moved a step closer to becoming the first man to claim consecutive titles at Flushing Meadows since Roger Federer.
The talented 20-year-old will next take on 2021 champ Daniil Medvedev in the semi-finals on Friday.
It was another steamy day with temperatures hovering above 30 degrees celsius in New York and Alcaraz appeared to have his own unique method of dealing with the sticky conditions.
At one point during the match he was seen rubbing what appeared to be sawdust onto his arms to combat the perspiration.
Carlos Alcaraz was seen rubbing what one commentator speculated was sawdust onto his arms to combat sweat during the event
The world No 1 was once again in sparkling form to make light work of his German opponent
‘This is interesting, sawdust being utilised here to slow down the sweating going on,’ announced Australian commentator Brenton Speed.
Aussie tennis legend Todd Woodbridge joked: ‘You could almost see him going up to the parallel bars at the Olympics.’
This year the US Open has experimented with partially closing the roofs of stadiums to provide some shade while day matches are on.
Daniil Medvedev issued a warning about the heat after his quarterfinal win over Andrey Rublev.
Despite getting the victory, Medvedev was not happy about playing in such difficult conditions, the 2021 champion complaining into the camera while wiping off sweat in the third set as he let out his frustrations.
‘One player is gonna die. And they’re gonna see,’ Medvedev said before powering on for a 6-4 6-3 6-4 win.
‘The only good thing I see in these conditions is that both suffer,’ Medvedev said after the match.
It was another steamy day in New York with temperatures hovering above 30 degrees celsius
Daniil Medvedev issued a warning about the stifling heat after his quarterfinal win
‘Usually there is not one that suffers so it’s tough for both of us.
‘Honestly, at the end of the first set I kind of couldn’t see the ball anymore,’ he said.
‘I kind of played with sensations. Just tried to go for it, tried to run, tried to catch the balls and he did the same.
‘Sometimes before the points I was like “wow it seems like he cannot run anymore”… but he was there all the time and I was like “damn, when is he going to be tired?”,’ Medvedev added.
‘But actually we were tired all the time. So yeah, brutal conditions and super tough to win.’
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