NEW YORK — Alexander Zverev is back in the US Open final, but the top-seeded German had to survive two tense tiebreaks against Karen Khachanov before finally securing his place in Sunday’s championship match.
Zverev defeated Khachanov 6-3, 7-6(7), 7-6(6) in Friday’s semifinal at Arthur Ashe Stadium, reaching his second US Open final and third consecutive Grand Slam final.
The victory was anything but routine.
After taking the opening set, Zverev found himself pushed into two dramatic tiebreaks as Khachanov repeatedly threatened to turn the match around. The German ultimately held his nerve when it mattered most, particularly in the third-set tiebreak after Khachanov opened up a 5-2 lead.
Khachanov even had set points at 6-4, but Zverev won the next four points to close out the match and end the Russian’s bid for his first Grand Slam final.
From early struggles to another major final
Zverev’s run in New York has been a remarkable turnaround.
The 29-year-old was pushed to five sets in each of his opening two matches, against Lorenzo Sonego and Quentin Halys. Since then, however, he has won four consecutive matches without dropping a set, including his semifinal victory over Khachanov.
His season has already reached another level.
Zverev captured his first Grand Slam title at the French Open earlier this year and subsequently reached the Wimbledon final. His US Open run now gives him another opportunity to win a second major championship in the same season.
According to Reuters, Zverev has now improved to 24-2 in Grand Slam matches this season and has won seven of his 10 career meetings with Khachanov.
The victory also adds another chapter to Zverev’s complicated US Open history.
He previously reached the final at Flushing Meadows in 2020, when he famously led Dominic Thiem by two sets before eventually losing in a fifth-set tiebreak. Six years later, Zverev gets another chance to finish the job in New York.
Khachanov’s unlikely run ends in the semifinals
For Khachanov, the defeat ended one of the tournament’s biggest comeback stories.
The Russian entered the US Open on a four-match losing streak and was close to dropping out of the Top 50. Yet he revived his form in New York, knocking out third seed Felix Auger-Aliassime and 14th seed Learner Tien before reaching his third Grand Slam semifinal.
He also entered the semifinal having spent significantly less time on court than Zverev, partly because his quarterfinal opponent, Alexander Blockx, retired during their match.
But against the No. 1 seed, Khachanov could not convert his chances in the crucial moments.
And then came the American challenge
Zverev’s opponent for Sunday’s final is now confirmed.
Ben Shelton defeated fellow American Frances Tiafoe, 4-6, 6-3, 6-3, 7-5, in the second men’s semifinal to book the biggest match of his career against Zverev.
The matchup gives the US Open a compelling contrast: the experienced German No. 1 seed chasing another Grand Slam title against a 23-year-old American playing in his first major final.
Shelton’s path to the final has been equally dramatic. He stunned defending champion Carlos Alcaraz in a five-set quarterfinal that finished at 3:33 a.m., setting a record for the latest finish in US Open history.
Now Shelton stands one victory away from ending a long drought in American men’s tennis.
No American man has won a Grand Slam singles title since Andy Roddick at the 2003 US Open. Shelton also becomes the first Black American man to reach the US Open men’s singles final since Arthur Ashe in 1972.
That makes Sunday’s final more than just another Grand Slam showdown.
For Zverev, it is a chance to add the US Open trophy to his French Open crown and erase the memory of his heartbreaking 2020 defeat.
For Shelton, it is an opportunity to make American tennis history.
And with the pressure of an entire home crowd behind the 23-year-old, Zverev’s toughest challenge in New York may still be waiting for him.
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