The magic lasted for one match: Serena and Alcaraz eliminated in the quarterfinals

Four years after retiring from tennis, Serena Williams stepped onto the court at Arthur Ashe again — and for a moment, it seemed as if she had never left. About 15,000 spectators filled the stadium to see the 23-time Grand Slam title winner team up with Carlos Alcaraz in the revived mixed doubles tournament at the US Open. The two smiled, encouraged each other, and gave the crowd one victory before their joint journey ended in the quarterfinals.

For Alcaraz, it was also a comeback. The 23-year-old Spaniard played his first competitive match since April, having been sidelined due to a wrist injury, and admitted that the occasion alongside one of the greatest tennis players in history made him nervous.

"Everyone saw that I made a double fault on the first point. I was really nervous. I hadn't played for almost five months and almost forgot what it feels like to step onto the court again. She made it much easier for me," he said.

In the first match, Williams and Alcaraz faced doubles specialists Erin Routliffe and Lloyd Glasspool. After falling behind 3-1 in the first set, the star-studded duo took control of the match, winning eight of the last nine games to finish 3-5, 1-4.

"I'm playing alongside the one and only Serena Williams, so what else can I do? Just enjoy it and try to do the things she tells me to do," Alcaraz said during the match.

Williams herself struggled to hide her excitement: "I never expected to return to this court. It was a really special moment. I didn't think it would happen."

Shortly after, they returned to the court for the quarterfinals, but this time Belinda Bencic and Flavio Cobolli were stronger. The Swiss and the Italian won 4-5 (4-7), 1-4 and sent the pair home. But even after the elimination, the smiles remained.

"Even if I lost, after playing with her, I feel amazing," Alcaraz said. Serena quickly corrected him with a smile: "We won! We won one and lost one. We finished in a draw."

For Williams, who previously celebrated a mixed doubles win at the US Open in 1998, the return was about much more than the result. She will not participate in the singles tournament, but four years after her last match in New York, the crowd at Arthur Ashe got another chance to see her compete.

Alcaraz, for his part, will now shift his focus to the singles — after getting a warm-up for his comeback alongside a partner who needs little more than her name to fill the stadium.