Alexander Zverev Wins US Open Title, Extends American Men's Grand Slam Drought

Alexander Zverev, a German tennis player, won the 2026 US Open men's singles title on Sunday, defeating American Ben Shelton in four sets: 6-3, 7-6 (2), 5-7, 6-2.

The victory marks Zverev's first US Open title and his second Grand Slam championship of the year, following his French Open win. His triumph extends the Grand Slam drought for American men to 23 years, as Shelton was aiming to become the first American man to win the tournament since Andy Roddick's 2003 US Open victory.

Zverev also reached the Wimbledon final this year, where he fell to Jannik Sinner. Zverev, 29, celebrated his win with a private dinner at Tao Downtown Restaurant and a party at Tao Nightclub in Chelsea on Sunday night, where he was greeted with a bottle parade and a sign reading "US Open Champion A. Zverev."

He won $5.5 million, matching the prize earned by women's champion Elena Rybakina, who secured her first US Open title on Saturday by defeating Aryna Sabalenka. Rybakina's victory also made her the new World No. 1 in women's singles, the first Kazakh tennis player to achieve this ranking, and her third Grand Slam singles title overall.

During the final, Shelton, 23, suggested a rule change regarding Zverev's habit of bouncing the ball numerous times before serving, citing delays in play. Zverev spent an average of 10 seconds ball-bouncing per serve, totaling approximately 2 hours and 30 minutes out of his 19 hours and 38 minutes on court during the tournament. Zverev apologized to the crowd for spoiling the party, acknowledging that "99.9% of the people wanted Ben to win."