Ben Shelton calls for rule change over Alexander Zverev's serve routine

The discussion about Alexander Zverev's style of serve is likely to continue. Now his defeated opponent in the final, Ben Shelton, has also spoken out. He is calling for a rule change in view of the US Open winner's serving routine. At the Grand Slam tournament in New York, the Hamburg native often let the ball bounce before serving. There is currently no time limit before the second serve.

“I think there should be a rule,” said the American Shelton after Zverev’s final victory. »You shouldn't have unlimited time. I think it's difficult for our sport to wait so long for the next rally."

Zverev's semi-final opponent Karen Chachanow had already complained about the German's quirk (more on that here). “That doesn’t just annoy me, but of course many players because it takes up so much time,” said the Russian. During the finals, Shelton's father and coach Bryan criticized the behavior. "Sascha bounces the ball so often that it gets you out," said the former professional on the US broadcaster ESPN (Sascha is Zverev's nickname, editor.)

"I'm not going to stay in a position with my knees bent and my body tense for 30 seconds while I wait," said the 23-year-old. "If he bounces the ball 20 to 25 times, I shouldn't just have to wait there." He emphasized that his tiredness towards the end of the final was not related to that.

Curious scene after the crucial point

Zverev won for the first time in New York on Sunday and celebrated his second Grand Slam title. The French Open winner defeated the American Ben Shelton 6:3, 7:6 (7:2), 5:7, 6:2 in the final and became the second German to triumph in the men's singles after Boris Becker in 1989 (you can read the whole game here in the live commentary).

"He's winning the US Open for the first time and doesn't notice it - remarkable," said Becker on sporteurope.tv about the bizarre moment immediately after the end of the match: "That's the scene of the year for me in sport."

In front of actors like Brad Pitt and Pierce Brosnan as well as sports stars like Lindsey Vonn, Zverev presented himself calmly in his sixth Grand Slam final. After 3:33 hours he completed the triumph with his first match point. As was the case throughout the tournament, his girlfriend Sophia Thomalla was not in his box due to her own professional commitments.