Pain-free Alcaraz makes winning return after injury layoff

NEW YORK, Aug 31 : Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz needed only a New York minute to hit his stride after a nearly five-month injury layoff, beating Russian Roman Safiullin 6-4 6-4 6-4 on Monday in the first round of the U.S. Open.Alcaraz arrived at Flushing Meadows as one of the tournament's biggest question marks, having not played since April due to a wrist injury, but he had his best weapon working for him in his first singles match in 139 days as he sent over 20 forehand winners.He next plays Portugal's Jaime Faria in the second round."It's been a really tough five months for me," said Alcaraz. "I missed it - I missed the crowd, the energy, I missed competition, I missed everything." Alcaraz got a brief U.S. Open warm-up in the mixed doubles with partner Serena Williams last week, an