Carlos Alcaraz's new haircut has been the talk of the town in Flushing Meadows. Ahead of his first-round match on Monday, the world No. 2 turned up to the US Open practice courts with a buzzcut, and it got all of his rivals talking.

Some were more brutal than others, with Frances Tiafoe branding Alcaraz's trim "terrible". However, world No. 1 Jannik Sinner believes anything looks good on his Spanish rival. Andy Murray, who is a self-confessed fan of the five-time Major winner, has now become the latest tennis star to have his say.

Alcaraz's bald look has taken the tennis world by storm. Even Murray, who recently admitted he no longer closely follows tennis since retiring, has noticed the Spaniard's new cut.

The former world No. 1 took to Instagram to weigh in on the most divisive debate in the sport right now - does the buzzcut look good or not?

"Absolutely love this hair cut," the three-time Major winner said in the comments of an Instagram post about Alcaraz's hair, adding a heart emoji.

Alcaraz's transformation came very suddenly. On Sunday, he had a full head of hair during his pre-tournament training session. Less than 24 hours later, he was back on the practice courts sporting a buzzcut.

The world No. 2 hadn't even played his opening match in Flushing Meadows by the time screenshots of his bald head went viral. Fans got a closer look at his new haircut when he stepped onto Arthur Ashe Stadium for his night session match against Reilly Opelka, winning in straight sets.

Afterwards, Alcaraz answered the question on everyone's lips. What happened to his hair?

"Quite different I guess, yeah. I mean, it was just I felt like my hair was really long already, and before the tournament I just really wanted to get a haircut," he explained.

"Suddenly, just my brother just - he misunderstood with the machine. He just cut it. Then, you know, the only way to fix it is just shave it off. It's just what he came, this haircut. To be honest, it's not that bad, I guess."

One of the first players to see Alcaraz's new hair, or lack of, was Tiafoe. The rivals bumped into each other in one of the player areas early on Monday.

The world No. 17 wasn't a fan. "It's horrible. It's terrible. I mean, it's definitely terrible. He's my guy though. It's funny," he declared.

But Alcaraz wasn't having it. "Frances is lying. Frances is lying. No, come on. Yeah, I saw the video. He showed up here saying that it is terrible," the former US Open champion laughed.

"I know he's lying. I know he likes the haircut. He likes it. He told me. So no, not hearing anything about coming from his mouth."

To be the first to receive the latest tennis news, join our WhatsApp community or newsletter