Aryna Sabalenka was left red-faced when she mistook Carlos Alcaraz for Jannik Sinner on live television.
The pair appeared on NBC’s TODAY show after winning the women’s and men’s singles US Open titles over the weekend.
Sabalenka beat Amanda Anisimova 6-3 7-6 [7-3] on Saturday, whilst Alcaraz defeated Sinner 6-2 3-6 6-1 6-4 the following day.
Both players won their second singles titles at Flushing Meadows, so the celebrations may have run long after the respective victories.
And whilst Sabalenka had an extra day to recover, she appeared to forget who she was sitting alongside in her television interview.
“By the way, I have a TikTok to do with Jan…,” the four-time Grand Slam champion said before realising her mistake: “Carlos!”
Alcaraz cut a shocked expression on his face and pretended to start walking away as his fellow champion expressed her embarrassment, before instantly saying, ‘Carlos, I’m sorry’.
However, the Spaniard took it on the chin and said: “It’s nine in the morning, don’t worry. It’s all good, it’s all good!”
Sabalenka and Alcaraz both saw the funny side of things, along with the hosts in what was a comical on-screen blip from the former.
“OK, this is the worst failure I’ve ever had in my life,” Sabalenka said, but Alcaraz joked: “I didn’t hear anything, don’t worry about it.”
How Sabalenka and Alcaraz won the US Open
World no. 1 Sabalenka, who lost both the Australian and French Open finals this year, cruised into the last eight of the US Open.
Rebeka Masarova, Polina Kudermetova, Leylah Fernandez and Cristina Bucsa were all beaten without the 27-year-old dropping a set.
A walkover was then awarded in the quarter-finals when Marketa Vondrousova withdrew with a knee injury.
Sabalenka trailed in the semi-finals against home favourite Jessica Pegula but fought back to earn a third consecutive final appearance.
The Belarusian ensured it only took two sets for her to win the title as Anisimova lost her second Grand Slam showpiece in 2025.
Similar to Sabalenka, Alcaraz didn’t drop a set during his opening four matches of the tournament.
He beat Reilly Opelka, Mattia Bellucci, Luciano Darderi and Arthur Rinderknech were all defeated by the French Open champion.
Another straight sets victory followed in the quarter-finals against Jiri Lehecka to set up a semi-final clash against Novak Djokovic.
Alcaraz dispatched the 24-time Grand Slam champion in three sets to reach the US Open final for the first time since his 2022 triumph.
After the start of the final was delayed amid the arrival of President Donald Trump, the 22-year-old beat his rival Sinner to take the crown.