National Sports

Shelton stopped in American men’s bid for US Open title

NEW YORK -- Alexander Zverev knew what he was up against, playing a U.S. Open final in a stadium full of people desperate to at last see another American champion.

He tuned out the screams for Ben Shelton for so long that he didn’t even realize when he won, not hearing the chair umpire’s announcement that the match was over.

“In that moment I was in the zone, a lot,” Zverev said. “I didn’t hear noise at all. I was in this kind of tunnel where I just didn’t hear anything.”

Zverev used that focus to win a second major championship and prevent a first Grand Slam title by an American man since 2003, beating Shelton 6-3, 7-6 (7-2), 5-7, 6-2 on Sunday.

Zverev finally broke through in the majors by winning this year’s French Open and followed up by adding the title in New York that he so painfully let slip away in 2020.

The No. 1 seed in a Grand Slam for the first time, he capitalized on Shelton’s shaky start in his first major final, played a nearly flawless tiebreaker on serve and then turned back a comeback attempt in front of a crowd that feverishly cheered Shelton on -- including girlfriend Trinity Rodman, who made it from her own soccer match in Washington before the finish.

“I know today 99.9% of the people wanted Ben to win, so I’m very sorry first of all,” Zverev said during the trophy presentation. “But second, it was an incredible atmosphere to play in. Even though I know that the crowd was against me, the crowd was always incredibly fair.”

Shelton was trying to win the first title by an American man since Andy Roddick won in Flushing Meadows in 2003, as well as become the first Black player to win the men’s crown since Arthur Ashe in 1968.

“It’s such a cool moment. Walking out on that court today, there’s nothing like it. I’ve never felt anything like that before,” Shelton said.

But Zverev was too good in majors this year and apparently didn’t even know how good he was. After hitting a serve winner, he dropped back behind the baseline as if set to return. Zverev, who later explained he thought the score was 5-1, eventually did figure out he had won, raising his arms in celebration.

Best player in biggest events

Zverev improved to 25-2 in major matches this year and won $5.5 million, matching the prize earned by women’s champion Elena Rybakina on Saturday as the largest in Grand Slam history.

“You’re one of the very best players in the world, maybe the best player in the world this year,” Shelton told Zverev.

He thought this title would come in 2020 and still acknowledges it should have. He won the first two sets against Dominic Thiem and got within two points of victory before becoming the first man to blow a two-set lead and lose in the final since 1949.

Whatever ghosts were left from then are long gone now.

Zverev also reached the final at Wimbledon, falling to Jannik Sinner, and became the No. 1 seed in New York when the top-ranked Sinner had to withdraw with a knee injury. He made the most of opportunities that came when Carlos Alcaraz had to sit out two majors and Sinner missed another, after they played in three straight Grand Slam finals in 2025.

Shelton, 23, had already eliminated the defending champion when he beat No. 2 seed Alcaraz in a five-set quarterfinal that ended at 3:33 a.m., the latest finish in U.S. Open history.