ATP Tour

What record has Zverev broken at the US Open?

Alexander Zverev has already endured a remarkable test of stamina at the US Open, needing two five-set victories to reach the third round in New York.

The top seed has spent nine hours and 26 minutes on court through his opening two matches, which is the longest time any top seed has needed to reach the third round of a major since 1999. Zverev first overcame Lorenzo Sonego in five sets before edging Quentin Halys in another deciding-set battle.

With that run, Zverev is also the first top seed in Grand Slam history to play two five-set matches in his opening two rounds.

The German’s nine-hour, 26-minute total comfortably surpasses the previous mark for a top seed: Rafael Nadal's seven hours and 19 minutes at Roland Garros in 2011. Nadal spent four hours and one minute battling John Isner in the first round before a three-hour, 18-minute encounter with Pablo Andujar in the second.

Zverev, the No. 2 player in the PIF ATP Rankings, has also moved beyond the previous record for any seeded player reaching the third round. Cristian Garin, the 16th seed at the 2022 Australian Open, had spent nine hours and 14 minutes on court through two rounds.

Andy Murray still holds the record for the longest time on court en route to the third round of a major tournament, but he was not seeded at the 2023 Australian Open, where he needed 10 hours, 34 minutes to battle Matteo Berrettini and Thanasi Kokkinakis.

Longest match times en route to Grand Slam R3 (since 1999)

Aiming to continue his run in New York, Zverev will next face Chilean lefty Alejandro Tabilo, whom he leads 2-0 in their Lexus ATP Head2Head series. If he defeats Tabilo, Zverev will have another record waiting for him.

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On record, the longest route to a Grand Slam fourth round is currently Jack Draper's 12 hours and 34 minutes at the 2025 Australian Open, narrowly ahead of Nicklas Kulti's 12 hours and 32 minutes at Roland Garros in 1992.

But perhaps the more remarkable number for Zverev is the one attached to his seeding. The longest route to the fourth round of a major for a top seed is Novak Djokovic's nine hours and 40 minutes at the 2024 Australian Open.

That means Zverev could become the record holder among top seeds if he were to defeat Tabilo after just 16 minutes.

Research for this story was provided by Jon Jeraj