Alexander Zverev advanced to his second Grand Slam final of 2026 with a straight-sets victory over Karen Khachanov 6-3, 7-6 (7), 7-6 (6) in Friday's US Open semifinal at Flushing Meadows.
The German will face either No. 8 seed Ben Shelton or No. 11 Frances Tiafoe in Sunday's final, with the two Americans playing later Friday for the right to give the United States a man in the championship match. Both have reached semifinals in New York before but neither has made a major final.
Zverev's victory sets up a potential opportunity for American tennis to end a long drought. The US is still seeking its first men's Grand Slam champion since Andy Roddick won in New York in 2003.
After capturing his first Grand Slam title at the French Open earlier this year, Zverev followed up by reaching the Wimbledon final, where he lost to Jannik Sinner. The German has compiled a 24-2 record in Grand Slam matches this season, demonstrating remarkable consistency at tennis's biggest tournaments.
The match represented redemption for Zverev, who has painful memories of his previous US Open final appearance. In 2020, he won the first two sets against Dominic Thiem but then collapsed, losing in a fifth-set tiebreaker as Thiem became the first man to win the US Open title after dropping the first two sets since 1949.
This time, Zverev stayed composed after taking a two-set lead. He has now won 13 consecutive sets after an unusual start to the tournament that saw him become the first No. 1-seeded man to play five-setters in each of the first two rounds of a major.
Khachanov was attempting to reach his first major final after a surprising run through the draw. The Russian arrived in New York with a losing record for the season but managed to reach his third Grand Slam semifinal, though he couldn't find the breakthrough needed to advance further.
Zverev's path to Sunday's final has been marked by both early struggles and late-tournament dominance. After those grueling five-set matches to open his campaign, he found his rhythm and has looked increasingly comfortable on the hard courts of Arthur Ashe Stadium.
The final will pit Zverev's experience against either American's hunger for a breakthrough. Shelton and Tiafoe represent the best hopes for American men's tennis to capture a home Grand Slam title for the first time in over two decades.
For Zverev, Sunday represents a chance to add a second major title to his resume and cement his status among tennis's elite. After years of being considered one of the best players never to win a Grand Slam, his French Open triumph earlier this year opened the floodgates, and he now finds himself one match away from doubling his major count.
