Carlos Alcaraz’s surprise new look at the 2025 US Open quickly turned into one of the most talked-about off-court stories of the tournament. The Spaniard showed up at Flushing Meadows with a shaved head, sparking a wave of fan reactions and memes across social media. When asked if he would consider matching the style, his rival Jannik Sinner laughed and firmly declined.
What Made Carlos Alcaraz Shave His Head, and How Did Jannik Sinner React?
Alcaraz’s buzz cut isn’t his first bold hairstyle moment in New York. The 22-year-old had worn a cropped look when he captured his maiden Grand Slam title at the same venue in 2022. This year, he explained the decision as part of a reset ahead of a tournament that has often brought out his best tennis.
“Well, I guess I need anything fresh to start a tournament as well as I can. And I think the U.S. Open suits me pretty well,” Alcaraz said in a pre-match interview before his opener against Reilly Opelka.
Carlos Alcaraz walking up for his pre-match interview for his 1st round U.S. Open match:
“Here comes Carlos Alcaraz. Yes, this is in fact, Carlos Alcaraz.” 💀💀💀
pic.twitter.com/FCVBBSyNNu
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) August 26, 2025
Sinner, who recently retired in the Cincinnati final against Alcaraz due to illness, praised his rival’s ability to pull off any hairstyle while making sure to rule himself out of trying it. “No [laughs], but look. For him everything looks good. If it’s longer or even if it’s very short,” the Italian said in an interview.
When pressed about the idea of going bald himself, the 24-year-old joked about the dramatic transformation it would create. “Well the good thing is they would not even recognize me. I have a huge amount of hair. You will see, in 3 days, his hair will be back very fast.”
Jan’s opinion about the most relevant topic of the last 24h.
👨🦲🇪🇸pic.twitter.com/TPTwW9pYz2
— Janniksin_Updates (@JannikSinner_Up) August 26, 2025
Meanwhile, both players have made strong starts to their campaigns in New York. Alcaraz, seeded second, took down Opelka 6-4, 7-5, 6-4 to book a second-round clash with Italy’s Mattia Bellucci in their first-ever ATP meeting. The winner of this match will take on either the 32nd seed Luciano Darderi or local wildcard Eliot Spizzirri in the third round.
Sinner, the defending champion and current world No. 1, cruised past Czech player Vit Kopriva 6-1, 6-1, 6-2 in just over an hour. He moved into the second round, facing Alexei Popyrin in their second career clash on the ATP Tour. Popyrin claimed their only previous encounter in straight sets at the 2021 Madrid Open. The victor of this matchup will meet either French wildcard Valentin Royer or No. 27 seed Denis Shapovalov in the third round.
How Did Alcaraz’s Brother Create This Viral Haircut Disaster?
After his straight-sets win over Opelka at the 2025 US Open, Alcaraz revealed the full story behind his drastic haircut. With his regular barber, Victor Martinez, absent, his brother stepped in but botched the first attempt. To fix the uneven cut, they decided to shave most of his hair off, leaving Alcaraz with the buzz cut that caught fans off guard in New York.
“I felt like my hair was really long already, and before the tournament, I just really wanted to get a haircut. Suddenly just my brother just – he misunderstood with the machine. He just cut it. Then, the only way to fix it was just to shave it off. To be honest, it’s not that bad, I guess,” Alcaraz explained in a post-match press conference.
The Spaniard’s relaxed reaction to questions about the haircut made clear he wasn’t taking the situation too seriously, turning what could have been an embarrassing moment into another example of his easygoing personality off the court.
