ATP Tour

Zverev keeps dream season rolling into US Open final after Khachanov win

After an inauspicious start to his US Open campaign, Alexander Zverev has clicked into gear during the second week in New York, where on Friday he booked his place in his third major final of the season.

The top seed overcame a spirited second-set challenge from World No. 50 Karen Khachanov to prevail 6-3, 7-6(7), 7-6(6) in the first semi-final of the New York major. Zverev held his nerve to win two dramatic tie-breaks en route to reaching his sixth major final, and second at the US Open following his heartbreak in the 2020.

World No. 2 Zverev, who was two points away from defeat in his first-round match and needed five sets in the second round too, has since not dropped a set, recording spotless wins over Alejandro Tabilo, Luciano Darderi, Botic van de Zandschulp and now Khachanov.

With his two-hour, 56-minute victory over Khachanov, Zverev has drawn level with Jannik Sinner atop the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin (7,950 points), which serves as a barometer for the battle to claim ATP Year-End No. 1 presented by PIF honours. Zverev also became just the 12th man since 1978 to reach a major final on three different surfaces in a single season, joining an exclusive list.

In January last year, Zverev could not hold back the tears after falling in his third consecutive major final at the Australian Open, where he suffered a straight-sets defeat to Sinner. The World No. 1 told Zverev that he would one day lift a major title.

This year, Zverev has completely flipped the trajectory of his career. He triumphed at Roland Garros to claim his first Grand Slam title before backing that up with a run to the Wimbledon final.

Now, Zverev stands on the brink of winning his second major title just four months after breaking through for his first. The 29-year-old, who is 24-2 at the majors in 2026, according to the Infosys ATP Win/Loss Index, will face Ben Shelton in Sunday’s final in New York.

The first of Friday’s semi-finals between Zverev and Khachanov featured a crowd including Brazilian football legend Ronaldo, who had earlier watched countryman and current Junior World No. 1 Luis Guto Miguel advance to the boys’ singles final before heading over to Arthur Ashe Stadium.

There, after a cagey start to the first men’s semi-final, Zverev did not miss his opportunity when he carved out his first break point, waiting patiently for Khachanov to plant his forehand wide and move ahead 5-3 in the opening set. It marked the second of five games in a row for Zverev, who let out a mighty roar before carrying his momentum into the start of the second set to build a set-and-break advantage.

Yet Khachanov, who was competing in his third major semi-final, responded with a couple of scorching forehand down-the-line passing shots in the fourth game of the second set, finding his groove and refusing to let Zverev pull further clear.

After a costly double fault and a missed forehand volley on top of the net, Zverev later found himself down 15/30 while serving at 4-5 in the second set. From there, the top seed produced three exquisite points: a serve-plus-one winner, a guided backhand pass up the line and another serve-plus-one forehand winner to close out the game.

It was a sequence that not only helped Zverev escape the first real signs of danger in the match, but also underlined his growing confidence in the biggest moments. Just a few games later, in a dramatic 14-minute tie-break, Zverev overturned a 3/5 deficit, winning six of the next eight points — including a 34-shot rally on set point — to move within a set of the final.

In the third-set tie-break, Zverev again came from behind and this time saved two set points from 4/6 to ultimately prevail and underline his status as the top seed. Despite defeat, Khachanov is up 24 spots to No. 26 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings with his run in New York.