In a supercharged atmosphere inside Arthur Ashe Stadium on Tuesday afternoon, Serena Williams and Carlos Alcaraz defeated Erin Routliffe and Lloyd Glasspool, 5-3, 4-1, to reach the quarterfinals of the 2026 US Open Mixed Doubles Championship.
A large crowd filed in to witness a match that marked the return of two of the most iconic US Open champions–Williams, 44, came out of retirement this summer, and Alcaraz, 22, had been off the tour nursing a wrist injury since April.
They got what they came for.
From the moment six-time singles champion Williams strode onto the court, with defending two-time singles champion Alcaraz trailing behind, the Ashe faithful responded to their every move.
Their start didn’t match their entrance: Alcaraz nervously had his serve broken in the first game.
A game later, the words “Serena Williams to serve” brought thunderous applause from the rafters, and a first game for the pair to knock off the jitters.
Clad in basketball-themed Nike apparel, Williams and Alcaraz eventually broke to level the set at three-all, a floated Williams backhand return forcing a Glasspool error.
A hold by Williams in the next game, and a service break – punctuated by back-to-back winners from the legendary pair–gave them the first set in 35 minutes.
“What else can I do, I’m playing next to the one and only Serena Williams,” Alcaraz said in an on-court interview with Andrea Petkovic during the changeover after the first set.
Williams and Alcaraz were off and running from there. They stretched their run to five consecutive games to lead. 5-3, 3-0. The rally of the match came two points later, as Alcaraz and Williams scrambled all over the hard courts to steal a point from Routliffe and Glasspool.
They didn’t win that game, but Alcaraz served out the match moments later, closing the victory in 58 you-had-to-be-there minutes.
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