Zverev Wins First US Open: A Full Recap of the 2026 Men’s Singles Final
In the early hours of September 14, Beijing time, the 2026 US Open men’s singles final concluded at Flushing Meadows. Top seed Alexander Zverev of Germany defeated No. 8 seed and home favorite Ben Shelton 6-3, 7-6(2), 5-7, 6-2, winning 3-1 in sets to claim his first US Open title. It was also the second Grand Slam title of Zverev’s career, following his first at the French Open earlier this year.
Match Progression: Consistency Over Firepower
In the first set, Zverev started quickly, breaking serve in the opening game to take a 2-0 lead. He won 94% of his first-serve points in the first set, giving Shelton almost no chance to break back, and took the set 6-3.
In the second set, Shelton clearly raised his level and forced a tiebreak. But in the tiebreak, Zverev won the first 5 points in a row and eventually took it 7-2, giving him a 2-0 lead in sets.
The third set was Shelton’s only real highlight of the match. The two players held serve through the first ten games to reach 5-5. In the crucial twelfth game, Shelton broke Zverev in a service game Zverev could not afford to lose, taking the set 7-5.
In the fourth set, Zverev gave his opponent no further chances. He broke serve early and then broke again in the seventh game, closing out the match cleanly 6-2.
Key Stats: Attack vs. Stability
The statistics tell an interesting story: Shelton, the more aggressive player, led in several categories, but Zverev won thanks to greater consistency and better execution on key points.
Category Zverev Shelton
Winners 35 47
Aces 9 10
Unforced Errors 31 47
Breaks of Serve 4 1
Service Games Broken Only 1 4
Zverev was broken only once in the entire match, while Shelton made 16 more unforced errors than his opponent. That was the key factor in how the match unfolded.
Historical Significance: Redemption and a Place Among the Greats
This was Zverev’s first US Open title. He had previously lost the 2020 US Open final after squandering a two-set lead against Dominic Thiem. Six years later, he finally fulfilled his dream at Flushing Meadows and erased the pain of that defeat.
With this victory, Zverev became the fourth man in the Open Era (since 1968) to win his first two Grand Slam titles in the same calendar year, joining Connors (1974), Vilas (1977), and Sinner (2024).
He also became the first male player born in the 1990s to win multiple Grand Slam titles. Previously, Medvedev and Thiem had each won only one major.
In the 2026 season, Zverev reached the semifinals or better at all four Grand Slams, finishing with the French Open title, a Wimbledon runner-up finish, and the US Open title. His Grand Slam record for the year was an astonishing 25-2, setting a new record for the most Grand Slam match wins in a single season by a German man.
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