New York, September 14, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Alexander Zverev defeated American Ben Shelton 6-3, 7-6(2), 5-7, 6-2 in the US Open men’s singles final to claim his second Grand Slam title and second major of the year.
The German completed the three-hour, 33-minute victory to strengthen his position in the race for the ATP Year-End No. 1 ranking. He now leads Jannik Sinner by 700 points in the ATP Live Race To Turin, which tracks the players’ standings ahead of the season-ending ATP Finals.
The title was particularly significant for Zverev, who was contesting his sixth Grand Slam final and third of the year. He has now gone 25-2 at the majors in 2026 and remains firmly in contention for the year-end No. 1 crown despite winning only two titles this season, both at Grand Slam level.
In his victory speech, Zverev paid tribute to his mother and spoke about the challenges his family had faced beyond tennis.
“When your 4-year-old son gets diagnosed with diabetes and doctors in the office tell you that life and sports will be very limited for that child, it takes a very, very strong mother to walk out of those offices and say ‘My son will be whatever he wants to be,’” Zverev said.
“If he wants to be a tennis player, he’ll be a tennis player. If he wants to do something else, he’ll do something else. But this illness will not define us,” he added.
Shelton, 23, was playing his first Grand Slam final and had been aiming to become the first American man to win a major since Andy Roddick’s US Open triumph 23 years ago. He also had the opportunity to become only the second African American man to win a men’s singles Grand Slam after Arthur Ashe.
Despite the defeat, Shelton will move to a career-high No. 4 in the ATP Rankings after his impressive run, which included a quarter-final victory over defending champion Carlos Alcaraz.
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