Alexander Zverev marched into a third straight Grand Slam final with the air of a man who now expects these stages, not just dreams of them.
The top seed delivered a composed, heavyweight performance to subdue Karen Khachanov 6-3 7-6 (9-7) 7-6 (8-6) at the US Open, tightening his grip on a season that is rapidly becoming the defining chapter of his career.
A favourite who looks like one
Arriving in New York as the French Open champion and fresh from a Wimbledon final, Zverev carried the burden of expectation as the man to beat. On this evidence, it sits lightly on his shoulders.
He bullied his way through the opening set, winning 13 of 15 points behind his first serve and all nine points at the net. The break came at 4-3, Zverev stepping in, taking time away, and ripping through Khachanov’s resistance before serving out the set with minimal fuss.
This was not the tentative Zverev who flirted with disaster in the first week, dragged to five sets in each of his opening two matches. This was the hardened, Grand Slam-winning version, the one who has now reached all four major semi-finals this year and looks increasingly at ease under the brightest lights.
He admitted those early struggles had become a punchline within his own camp.
“After the second round, at about 3am I was sitting with my team in the locker room and we were laughing at how bad I was playing,” he said. “That sense of humour helped me. I obviously have improved a bit otherwise I would not be in the US Open final.”
He has not dropped a set since.
Khachanov pushes, Zverev answers
Khachanov, ranked 50 in the world, refused to fold. Broken early in the second set, he clawed his way back, began to hit through the court and dragged Zverev into longer, more physical rallies.
The Russian’s finest moment came when he stared down a set point and erased it with a stunning backhand to finish a 22-shot rally, a point that brought the crowd to life and briefly rattled the favourite.
But when the set reached its tipping point, Zverev took control again. In the tie-break, he stepped inside the baseline, dictated with depth and weight, and forced errors rather than waiting for them. On a pivotal rally, he simply refused to miss, grinding Khachanov down from the back of the court before finally earning and converting another set point. It felt like a shift. Khachanov had thrown his best at him; Zverev was still two sets clear.
The third set turned into a serving duel. No breaks. Not even a break point. Both men held firm, Khachanov swinging freely, Zverev protecting his advantage with clinical efficiency. The match narrowed into another tie-break, where one loose moment could flip the night on its head.
This time Khachanov struck first, racing ahead and carving out two set points. The door was open. Zverev slammed it shut.
He saved both with the kind of nerve that has often been questioned in his career. From there, he surged. The top seed tightened his patterns, cut out the risk, and watched as Khachanov finally blinked, sending a forehand long to hand over the match.
Arms spread wide, Zverev turned to his coaching team in a controlled but unmistakable release of emotion. A sixth major final secured. A second US Open final booked, four years after that brutal five-set collapse to Dominic Thiem in 2020.
A different Zverev, a familiar stage
This run comes in a landscape altered by injury. With world number one Jannik Sinner and defending champion Carlos Alcaraz both hampered this year, Zverev has supplied the consistency others could not. Three straight Slam finals. A shot at a second major of the season. A genuine command of the tour’s biggest stages.
He will face either Ben Shelton or Frances Tiafoe on Sunday, two Americans who will own the crowd and the noise. Zverev knows exactly what awaits him.
“I think it [Sunday] will be incredibly special especially, these two guys are crowd favourites and everyone loves them,” he said. “Tonight will be an epic semi-final and I am looking forward to watching it. Hopefully I can not make their American dream come true.”
This time, he returns to the US Open final not as the nervy contender of 2020, but as a Grand Slam champion, the top seed, the man carrying the weight of expectation.
The question now is simple: can anyone stop him from turning this season into his era?
