WHAT HAPPENED: It’s a conquest that the ultra-talented Alexander Zverev is bent on achieving. If he plays like he did when eliminating Jacob Fearnley, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4, in the second round of the US Open, he just might.
Zverev’s showing in Louis Armstrong Stadium on Thursday night was spot-on, for the most part, as he kept alive his dream of winning his first Grand Slam.
The No. 3-seeded German has been close to hoisting a Grand Slam trophy. The hardware has been in reach, and in sight, as Zverev has advanced to the final in every Slam, save Wimbledon.
Earlier this year he was an Australian Open bridesmaid. In 2024, he was a Roland Garros finalist. Five years ago in Arthur Ashe Stadium, Zverev was two games shy from wearing the US Open crown.
His resume would be the envy of the majority of players with 24 tour-level titles and an Olympic gold medal. That’s impressive, as is Zverez’s motivation to bag a Grand Slam.
Zverev had a worthy opponent in Fearnley, a speedy British competitor with a big game and future. After helping Texas Christian University win a national title, Fearnley, ranked No. 60, dominated in Challenger-level events and this season earned his stripes with the game’s best.
But the former Horned Frog needs more seasoning to leapfrog an experienced player like Zverev. The unseeded Fearnley’s serve is also a work in progress as he constructs his game to be more lethal.
“There are no easy matches,’’ Zverev said. “The level of tennis is improving with everybody playing great tennis these days.”
Zverev broke the Brit in the first game and rode that out to a first-set win as Fearnley had five double faults, 14 unforced errors and treatment for an ailing right shoulder.
It was rinse-and-repeat in the second set as Zverev broke in the first game, but unlike the first set, he surrendered his advantage. Then Zverev broke in the sixth game, the difference in the set.
Fearnely lifted his game in the final frame, but his upset hopes were extinguished when Zverev converted his sixth match point.
While others predict one of the Big Two will prevail for the title, don’t discount Zverev.
“I’m here to spoil the party,’’ Zverev said. “And that’s what I plan to do.”
WHAT IT MEANS: The German’s eyes are on the prize and that means sticking around for the second week. He’s building toward that with two straight-set wins in reaching the third round, where he faces the winner of No. 25-seeded Feliz Auger-Aliassime vs. unseeded Roman Safiullin.
MATCH POINT: Zverev has a Grand Slam distinction, half good, half bad. At the 2020 US Open when advancing to the first of his three Grand Slam finals, Zverev was the first player to rally from two sets down to win his semifinal and then lose the final by squandering a two-set cushion.
