Zverev Advances to US Open Final After Thrilling Victory Over Khachanov
Alexander Zverev walked into Flushing Meadows as a man still arguing with his own game. He walked out of this semi-final as a US Open finalist, carried there by a ferocious serve and a stubborn refusal to blink when it mattered most.
The German beat Karen Khachanov 6-3, 7-6 (9-7), 7-6 (8-6), a straight-sets scoreline that barely hints at how tight this contest became. Khachanov led in both tie-breaks. On another night, this goes four, maybe five. On this one, Zverev’s serve drew a line under every doubt.
He hit six double faults. He also hit 15 aces. That trade-off told the story.
His second serve averaged 112mph, almost 20mph quicker than Khachanov’s. Risk everywhere, but reward when the pressure bit hardest. Time and again, that delivery dragged him out of trouble and flipped momentum in rallies that had no right to be his.
“Where did that come from?” gasped former British number one Annabel Croft on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra as Zverev uncorked his 15th and final ace, a thunderbolt in the clutch. “The way Zverev has been serving has been enormous but what a moment to come out with that.”
She wasn’t exaggerating. Each time Khachanov pushed, Zverev found another gear on serve. Each time questions were asked, he answered with pace, angle and nerve.
“Zverev has just got better and better the more the tournament has gone on,” Croft added. “His wobbles were at the beginning of the tournament and since then he has got better. Today every time he faced questions and problems he really stepped up to the plate and served spectacularly.”
From 3am Doubts to a Grand Slam Final
The transformation has not been subtle. Zverev himself admitted as much on court.
“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, and that sense of humour helped me,” he said. “In practice I started feeling the ball better, and then moving forward I was playing much better tennis. I obviously have improved a bit otherwise I would not be in the US Open final.”
The line drew a smile, but the context ran deeper. Zverev has carried scars at major level: near-misses, injuries, questions about whether his best tennis would ever fully land on the sport’s biggest stages.
“Sometimes things just go your way, I have had a lot of struggles at the major level and I was so close so many times,” he said. “Maybe this year God has said this is going to be my year and to enjoy my time on the court. I am enjoying it, I love playing these big finals and I can't wait for Sunday.”
That last sentence hung in the New York air. He knows what’s coming next.
Khachanov’s Missed Chances
For Khachanov, this was a night of what-ifs.
He left the court to warm applause, signing autographs, acknowledging a run that will send him surging back up the rankings. But he also left knowing he had Zverev where he wanted him in both the second and third sets.
In the third-set tie-break, the Russian surged 5-2 ahead. Zverev looked tight, tentative, “a man under pressure” as the commentary put it, while Khachanov swung freely, “hitting with no concerns at all”.
Khachanov had two points on his own serve at 5-4 in the breaker. Take both and the match goes to a fourth set. Instead, Zverev clawed his way back, including one stunning cross-court winner after being forced back by an attempted lob – his 37th winner of the match, and one that shifted the mood inside the stadium.
Khachanov’s level in patches was outstanding. He had won 13 of 14 points at the net at one stage, picking his moments to move forward and finishing with authority. From the back of the court he struck a huge forehand into the corner and celebrated “like a nonchalant gladiator to the baying crowd”. The tie-breaks lit the match up, just as they had in the second set, but he could not close either of them.
On another day, as the commentary suggested, this goes the distance. On this one, he unquestionably left chances behind.
An American Dream to Ruin
Now Zverev turns towards Sunday and a final that will belong to the home crowd before a ball is struck. His opponent will be an American: either Frances Tiafoe or Ben Shelton, both adored in New York, both built for a night-session roar.
Zverev knows exactly what he is walking into.
“I think it will be incredibly special, these two guys are crowd favourites and everyone loves them,” he said of Tiafoe and Shelton. “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.”
That last line carried a hint of mischief, but also intent. Zverev has spent this fortnight playing his way into form, his serve growing louder with every round, his belief hardening.
The American dream is ready-made. The question now is whether that 112mph second serve, and the man behind it, are about to tear up the script.
