Carlos Alcaraz marks US Open triumph with striking new look after buzzcut fail

Newly-crowned US Open champion Carlos Alcaraz has unveiled a striking new look following the haircut-gone-wrong that had everyone talking.

Alcaraz set the tennis world alight when he emerged for his first-round match against Reilly Opelka with an unrecognisable buzzcut, having ditched his trademark short, back and sides after what the Spaniard revealed was a botched trim by his brother Alvaro.

“My brother misunderstood with the machine he cut it,” Alcaraz said after beating Opelka. “And the only way to fix it is to shave it off. To be honest, it’s not that good. Its not that bad, I guess.”

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Among those critical of the new trim was American world number 29 Frances Tiafoe, Alcaraz’s friend and rival, who despite sporting a close-cropped style himself described Alcaraz's new haircut as "horrendous".

The fresh style did not impact his exploits on the court, though, with Alcaraz dropping just a solitary set throughout the entire US Open as he beat long-term foe Jannik Sinner in the final to claim his sixth grand slam at the age of just 22.

But instead of opting to keep his hair out of the headlines for the foreseeable future, perhaps by growing it back out, Alcaraz has now opted for another drastic change to catch the eyes of all, courtesy of his barber Victor.

Alcaraz has buzzed and bleached his hair after sharing teasers of the style switch on Instagram, where he posted pictures of him trying out a luscious blonde wig and showed his head covered in foil mid-transformation.

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Alcaraz kept to his promise of celebrating his second triumph at Flushing Meadows in style, something he hinted at ahead of last weekend’s final.

When asked what he might do to his hair to mark a landmark victory, the Spaniard smiled and said: “(Something) even better. Even better. You will see. Surprise.”

Alcaraz returned to his homeland following his second US Open win but will be back Stateside at the end of the month to take part in the Laver Cup in San Francisco as part of Team Europe.