Breaking
ARThe alleged contact with the Israeli army causes panic in Haret HreikITRussian drones hit Kiev-Warsaw train, mutual attacks between Moscow and KievTRRussia carried out an air strike on the route used by Boris Johnson and European officialsTRIs public transportation free in Istanbul on September 14, 2026, until what time?FRVisit of Pope Leo XIV to Paris: traffic restrictions and security measures planned for September 25 and 26TREarthquakes that occurred in Türkiye on September 14, 2026 are listedTR'Streets Safe' Operation in Istanbul: 18 Suspects CaughtRUFive people were injured in Sochi due to falling debris from Ukrainian dronesDESweden's Social Democrats remain the strongest force despite a poor resultRURussian troops broke through the defenses of the Ukrainian Armed Forces on the Orekhovsky sector of the frontARThe alleged contact with the Israeli army causes panic in Haret HreikITRussian drones hit Kiev-Warsaw train, mutual attacks between Moscow and KievTRRussia carried out an air strike on the route used by Boris Johnson and European officialsTRIs public transportation free in Istanbul on September 14, 2026, until what time?FRVisit of Pope Leo XIV to Paris: traffic restrictions and security measures planned for September 25 and 26TREarthquakes that occurred in Türkiye on September 14, 2026 are listedTR'Streets Safe' Operation in Istanbul: 18 Suspects CaughtRUFive people were injured in Sochi due to falling debris from Ukrainian dronesDESweden's Social Democrats remain the strongest force despite a poor resultRURussian troops broke through the defenses of the Ukrainian Armed Forces on the Orekhovsky sector of the front
BackAlexander Zverev wins his first US Open title and becomes the second German to triumph there
Alexander Zverev wins his first US Open title and becomes the second German to triumph there
BREAKING
Le Figaro Actualités43 minutes agoSports1 min readFranceView original

Alexander Zverev wins his first US Open title and becomes the second German to triumph there

Quick Look

  • Alexander Zverev won his first Grand Slam title at the US Open by defeating Ben Shelton in the final, becoming the second German player to triumph in New York after Boris Becker in 1989.
  • At 29, he captured his second major title of the season after Roland Garros and made history with several rare performances, including surviving his first two rounds in five sets.

AI-generated summary

Why It Matters

Alexander Zverev had reached two Grand Slam finals previously without winning a title, including a landmark defeat to Dominic Thiem in the US Open final six years ago. He had already won Roland-Garros in June 2026, becoming the first German to win a Grand Slam title on clay since Boris Becker.

Font size

The number of Top 20 players Zverev had to face to reach the final. This is the third time in his career that the German has found himself in the final of a Grand Slam without having played one.

Six years after a significant defeat against Thiem in the final, Zverev lifted his first trophy at the US Open.

Skip the ad

Zverev makes history by becoming the first player to triumph at the US Open after surviving his first two rounds in five sets (Lorenzo Sonego then Quentin Halys). A rare performance in the Majors and achieved by his compatriot Boris Becker at the 1996 Australian Open (Greg Rusedski then Thomas Johansson), and Gaston Gaudio at Roland-Garros 2004 (Guillermo Canas then Jiri Novak).

Skip the ad

The only player to have played in three Grand Slam finals in 2026, Alexander Zverev becomes number one in the Race, this Monday ahead of the Italian Jannik Sinner and will be in the fight to take the Italian's first place in the world at the end of the season.

Crowned at Roland-Garros in June, Zverev won a second Grand Slam title in New York at the age of 29.

Zverev became the second German player to triumph at the US Open, 37 years after his compatriot Boris Becker (1989).

After Jimmy Connors (Australian Open, Wimbledon and US Open in 1974), Guillermo Vilas (Roland-Garros and US Open in 1977) and Jannik Sinner (Australian Open and US Open in 2024), the German is the fourth player in the Open era (since 1968) to win his first two Grand Slam titles in the same season.

The world number 2 now leads 6-0 in his confrontations with Ben Shelton. The latter was only able to glean two short sets against the German;...

Alexander Zverev is the ninth player to have reached all the Grand Slam semi-finals in the same season. His predecessors are Rod Laver and Tony Roche (1969), Ivan Lendl (1987), Roger Federer (2005-09), Rafael Nadal (2008, 2019), Novak Djokovic (2011-13, 2021, 2023, 2025), Andy Murray (2011) and Jannik Sinner (2025).

The German is one of twelve players who reached a Grand Slam final, in the same year on hard court, grass court and clay court

The 29-year-old champion has “only” won two titles in 2026. But what titles! After Roland-Garros, the US Open which becomes his 26th title on the main circuit, his sixteenth on hard court.

The number of Grand Slam tournaments Alexander Zverev participated in before winning his first title at Roland Garros in June. Only Goran Ivanisevic has done better: the Croatian won Wimbledon in 2001, in his 48th appearance.

In his 46 confrontations against left-handers since his debut on the big circuit, Zverev has won… 45 times. His only executioner? A certain Rafael Nadal.

Zverev signed his 53rd victory of the year against Shelton, the 25th in a Grand Slam. It's better this season than Sinner and Alcaraz. It is true that the two best players of 2024 and 2025 were often injured this year…

With a total of 23 hours and 11 minutes on the courts in seven matches, Zverev becomes the second player to have spent the most time on the courts at the US Open, after Carlos Alcaraz, in 2022, who spent 23 hours and 40 minutes.

The German will leave New York with a check for 5.5 million dollars (around 4.7 million euros), a record prize money in the history of Grand Slam tournaments.

What to Watch

AI outlook — possibilities, not facts

  • Alexander Zverev will be in contention for world No. 1 at the end of the 2026 season

    Likely · Within months

  • Zverev will continue to perform strongly on hard court in upcoming tournaments

    Possible · Within months

Open Questions

  • Can Zverev maintain his level of performance to finish the year as world number one?
  • How will this victory influence his confidence and his objectives for the next Grand Slam tournaments?
  • What will be the impact of this victory on the hierarchy of men's tennis, particularly against Sinner and Alcaraz?

Related Topics

This article was originally published by Le Figaro Actualités.

Related Stories

PSG wins its first victory in Ligue 1 despite a difficult second half
Developing·

PSG wins its first victory in Ligue 1 despite a difficult second half

Paris Saint-Germain secured their first Ligue 1 win of the season thanks to a goal from Ferran Torres and a strong performance from Matvey Safonov, but showed weaknesses in the second half, notably defensively, while Brest paid tribute to Éric Roy and caused problems for PSG despite the defeat, and Achraf Hakimi suffered an injury that could compromise his presence against Marseille.

Le Figaro Actualités
2 min read
More on this topicalexander zverev