German Alexander Zverev sat in the middle of the almost empty Arthur Ashe Stadium next to his brother Misha, enjoying a rare moment of calm after one of the most important victories in his career. In front of them was the US Open Tennis Championship (Flushing Meadows) Cup, which he won after defeating American Ben Shelton 6-3, 7-6 (7-2), 5-7, 6-2 in the final match on Sunday evening, to win his second title in the tournament. The four Grand Slam tournaments, after winning the French Open this year.
“I can enjoy this title much more than I did in (Paris),” Zverev said after the match. I was very nervous there, but now I feel very happy. "I am very happy."
Zverev, born in Hamburg, became the second German player to win the US Open title after his compatriot Boris Becker. However, his celebration of the title was not without a funny situation, as in the fourth set it seemed as if he did not realize that he had already won the match. After he scored the last point, he acted as if the match had not ended and prepared to play the next half, before looking at the scoreboard and realizing that he had achieved victory.
He said with a smile: “I thought the score was 5-1, not 6-2. I think I simply forgot the score.”
Aside from this funny situation, the coronation moment carried much deeper meanings for Zverev, after he used his speech after the match to recall some of the milestones of his career and send a touching tribute to his mother, Irina.
Addressing his team, which is led by his father, Zverev said: “We have not won a Grand Slam title for 30 years, and now we have won two titles in 3 months.”
He added: “I think God saw how hard we worked, how much we suffered, and how much pain we put in for it.”
In his confrontation with Shelton, the German player showed a greater degree of maturity and toughness, and maintained his calm in the decisive moments despite the enthusiastic atmosphere created by the American fans in the largest tennis stadiums in the world.
The crowd went from enthusiastic encouragement for Shelton to warm applause for Zverev when he spoke about his mother, whom he described as “the most important woman” in his life.
After achieving his second Grand Slam title, Zverev faces another major goal, which is to reach the top of the world rankings. The gap separating him from Italian Jannik Sinner has narrowed from more than 5,000 points to less than 2,000 points.
Zverev said: “I will remain focused during the remainder of the year, and I will do everything in my power to achieve results that give me a chance to become number one in the world.”
World champion Lando Norris said that the Madring Circuit, the newest track in the Formula 1 World Championship, and the rules of the virtual safety car need to be changed, after he threw away a win that was within his reach in the Spanish Grand Prix, yesterday (Sunday).
Norris, who finished third, said: “Turns 18 and 19 should be eliminated, they are useless.” He added: “Just make the path straighter before the sharp turn. “I don’t know how someone could look at this design and say, ‘Wow.’”
The lack of overtaking opportunities also made the early virtual safety car period change the outcome of the race. The timing of the use of the virtual safety car, after intervening to move Aston Martin driver Lance Stroll's car off the road after it stopped, allowed all drivers who were behind Norris to enter the pit lane and gain some time, but it actually punished him for being too far ahead of the pit lane entrance.
"There was nothing I could have done as a driver to do a better job," Norris told reporters. “I started from first place and led the race, then lost it for a reason beyond my control.”
The interim Spanish coach of the South Korean national football team, Robert Moreno, said on Monday that he wanted to make the country's football fans "happy" after a disastrous World Cup and a series of controversial issues that damaged the national team's image.
Moreno, the former Spain national team coach, will lead South Korea in friendly matches in the coming months. The South Korean Federation said that Moreno may continue in his position during the Asian Cup scheduled to be held in Saudi Arabia next January and February, “subject to evaluation.”
Moreno summoned captain Heung-Min Son to his squad for the next four friendly matches at home, stressing his desire to bring a smile back to the faces of South Korean fans.
The 48-year-old coach said: “We will try to do our work honestly, and with the aim of making all Korean football fans happy.”
