Carlos Alcaraz entered Arthur Ashe Stadium without an effective strategy to defeat Ben Shelton; Alexander Zverev entered Arthur Ashe Stadium armed with one that Carlos Alcaraz never could: an approach designed to counter Shelton. Zverev identified Shelton’s greatest strength as both strength and potential vulnerability–his reliance on pace–rather than match the American’s power, the German star kept back, capitalizing on any tactical misstep Alcaraz may have committed during their US Open final encounter.
Shelton came into this match feeling confident after defeating Alcaraz in five sets in his quarterfinal. But Zverev had always won their previous five head-to-head meetings; eventually he emerged victorious by defeating Shelton 6-3, 7-6, 5-7, 6-2 to claim two Grand Slam titles this year.
“Against Ben, you don’t need to be aggressive all the time,” Zverev reflected after the match. “The more pace you play to his backhand the better he plays. I think that’s the mistake Carlos and maybe Frances [Tiafoe] made…”
Zverev’s preparation was thorough. After reaching the semifinals, he revealed he stayed up until 3:30 a.m. watching Shelton’s intense five-set showdown with Alcaraz. “I watched Shelton-Alcaraz until 3:30 a.m. last night,” he said. “I did not go to bed, I was up late, I was watching TV because I was sleeping in anyway.” By the time he faced Shelton, Zverev had already studied how the American troubled Alcaraz.
Alcaraz had tried to counter Shelton with aggression, attempting to match the American’s power and pace. But Shelton thrived in these exchanges, using his powerful serve, sharp returns, and angled groundstrokes to maintain pressure. At one point, Shelton won nine consecutive games and finished with 34 winners, leaving Alcaraz struggling through the second and third sets. Zverev, in contrast, avoided another power battle, forcing Shelton to generate more of his own offense.
This approach played to Shelton’s weaknesses. Unlike when he can redirect pace, Shelton is less effective when required to consistently create it. Zverev’s baseline consistency kept the ball in play and prevented Shelton from leveraging his speed into immediate attacks.
Shelton’s serve had proven to be a formidable weapon capable of putting opponents on the back foot. Alcaraz acknowledged this uncertainty after their quarterfinal, noting the unpredictability of whether Shelton would rally or earn a free point on serve. This unpredictability makes Shelton especially dangerous in critical moments. Recognizing this, Zverev knew he had to prevent Shelton from gaining any comfort outside of his serve.
This was evident during the opening two sets, as Zverev quickly broke Shelton following a double fault and did not face a break point until the third set. While Shelton’s serve kept him competitive, Zverev remained solid behind his own service games.
Shelton finally broke through in the third set, winning it 7-5. He started the fourth set strongly, moving ahead 30-love, but then faltered with a double fault and two unforced errors. Seizing the opportunity, Zverev secured a break, added another at 5-2, and closed out the match 6-2. This marked a major comeback for Zverev, who had previously been denied his first major at this tournament six years earlier by Dominic Thiem. This time, he left New York as the champion. Shelton ended with 47 unforced errors compared to Zverev’s 35.
Alexander Zverev’s Second Grand Slam Title Raises Both Excitement and Questions
Claiming a second Major title within a single season is a significant achievement for Zverev, especially as the first German to do so in nearly four decades since Boris Becker in 1989.
This success reshapes the conversation around his career, highlighted by a 25-2 Grand Slam match record in 2026 that includes victories at Roland-Garros and the US Open. His only defeats came against top rivals Alcaraz in the Australian Open semifinals and Jannik Sinner in the Wimbledon final.
Still, some debate surrounds the shape of his path to these finals, as neither Paris nor New York saw him face a player seeded higher than No. 21. His semifinal opponents were the 26th seed Jakub Mensik in Paris and unseeded Karen Khachanov in New York.
Though Zverev’s accomplishments should not be diminished; tennis rewards those who win each match, his future Grand Slam matches against Alcaraz and Sinner will provide clearer insight into Zverev’s growth.
Shelton’s loss extends the United States men’s Grand Slam title drought back to Andy Roddick’s 2003 US Open triumph. Still only 23, Shelton will climb from No. 23 in world rankings after this run to become No. 4. Zverev acknowledged Shelton was likely on track for major victories down the road.