The villain of the movie reigns in New York

What seemed like a historic night for the United States has turned into a nightmare. Alexander Zverev has stood tall and embraced his role as public enemy number 1, defeating Ben Shelton with a score of 6-3 7-6(2) 5-7 and 6-2 after 3 hours and 32 minutes of play. A stellar performance that cements him as the best tennis player of the year and allows him to claim the second Grand Slam of his career after the one he secured at Roland Garros a few months ago.

Until 2026, Zverev was labeled a conservative player who would falter in important moments. Far from sinking into a bottomless pit, 'Sascha' has reinvented himself and managed to elevate his level, also taking advantage of a season marked by the injuries of Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner. Today, he completely dismantled Shelton's tennis, surpassing him by far and silencing an Arthur Ashe Court that was eagerly awaiting a U.S. champion in the men's draw after 23 years.

Two breaks give Zverev the first set

The match began in the worst possible way for Ben Shelton's interests and the Arthur Ashe crowd, as Zverev broke the American's serve in the first game of the match. Little by little, Ben started to find his rhythm, and even had a couple of 0-30 opportunities to turn the situation around, but whenever he found himself in a dangerous position, 'Sascha' relied on his serve to save the day.

The German's strategy was based on pressuring the American's backhand to force him into errors, and it was working to perfection. With his backhand, Zverev looked just as comfortable as ever, and with his forehand, he exploited the weakest shot of Shelton to demonstrate his superiority. In fact, a double fault from Ben resulted in another break that ended the first set in Alexander's favor at 6-3.

Zverev takes the tiebreak and puts Shelton on the ropes

The second set did not improve Shelton's situation, as he appeared quite nervous and made many errors. With Zverev leading 2-1, another double fault from Ben led to a new break point for the German, but he saved it with a great serve. Sascha's solidity was the key to understanding the score, as he was hardly making any mistakes, and his strategy seemed flawless, in stark contrast to Ben's.

Even so, Shelton managed to cling to the set, saving dramatic situations like a 0-30 when he was down 6-5. In the tiebreak, it seemed that the crowd could play a key role in favor of the American player, but Zverev stuck to his guns and played better than ever to take the tiebreak and leave the local idol on the ropes, who had no answers to 'Sascha's' game plan.

Shelton lifts the Arthur Ashe crowd

In the third set, serving was the main focus during the first games. Shelton still struggled to read Zverev's backhand as he would like, while the German also failed to find stability against Ben's variety of serves. However, this time it was the American who managed his first break point at 3-2, although the German player saved it with a great serve and a trademark cross-court backhand.

Again, with Shelton up 4-3, he pressured Zverev and got to 30-30, but the German came up with a spectacular cross-court passing shot to avoid worse trouble. Nevertheless, it was clear that the momentum had shifted, and at 6-5, the American player fought for every point to nervously break Alexander's serve and take the match to a fourth set. Finger to the ear to rally the Arthur Ashe crowd, and hope for a comeback.

Zverev seals the deal on Shelton

The fourth set started with too many problems for Ben, who went from the euphoria of winning the third to the tension of facing a break point in the first game. He saved it with a great volley, but failed a passing shot on the second that created a dramatic situation for him. Inexplicably, Shelton completely fell apart, and from there on began a mental battle between 'Sascha,' trying to hold serve at all costs, and the American, risking too much to mount a comeback.

Unfortunately for Shelton, Zverev not only did not falter, but broke his serve again to go up 5-2. The German felt no pressure when it came to closing, and with a great serve sealed his second Grand Slam. The most surreal situation occurred when he did not realize he had won, and had to find out from the crowd that his moment had arrived. All the pressure was on his shoulders following Sinner's absence and the defeats of Djokovic and Alcaraz, but just as in Paris, he made a statement to continue building his legacy.

This is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, El villano de la peli reina en Nueva York