Alexander Zverev has won his first US Open men's singles title, beating home favourite Ben Shelton 6-3 7-6 (7-2) 5-7 6-2 on Arthur Ashe Stadium. The victory, reported across major outlets on 13 September 2026, marks the 29-year-old German top seed's second major title following his breakthrough French Open win earlier this year.

The result ended the bid of 23-year-old Shelton to become the first American man to win a Grand Slam singles title since Andy Roddick in 2003. Shelton struggled early in front of a partisan crowd of 24,000 spectators, double-faulting in the opening game to drop serve immediately. Zverev capitalised on the advantage, targeting Shelton's backhand in baseline rallies and sealing the opening set before taking control of a second-set tie-break.

Shelton staged a recovery in the third set, converting his third break point opportunity to take the match into a fourth. However, a loose service game from the American at the start of the fourth set allowed Zverev to re-establish command. Zverev did not realise he had secured the championship when Shelton returned long on match point, only celebrating after his coaching team confirmed the score.

Speaking to his team afterwards, which includes his father Alexander senior and brother Mischa, Zverev said: "We went 30 years without winning a Grand Slam title and now won two in the span of three months. I think God has seen how hard we have worked, how hard we have suffered and how much pain we went through."

Zverev's path to the title was aided by injuries to his principal rivals. Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz had won all the Grand Slam titles across 2024 and 2025, but Sinner missed this US Open while Alcaraz was sidelined for both the French Open and Wimbledon earlier in the season. Zverev progressed through the early rounds in New York through a series of late finishes without facing a top-20 opponent prior to the final.

The victory maintains Zverev's unbeaten record against Shelton, taking their head-to-head record to six wins from six matches. Despite the defeat, Shelton's run capped a strong response to his first-round loss against Otto Virtanen at Wimbledon, having won the Canadian Open ahead of his first major final.

Following the tournament, Zverev remains world number two behind Sinner, though he has reduced the points deficit at the top of the ATP rankings. Shelton is projected to rise to a career-high ranking of world number four. I will be monitoring the tour as Sinner and Alcaraz work their way back to full fitness.