Zverev wins US Open after beating Shelton in four sets

German top seed Alexander Zverev won his second Grand Slam singles title on Sunday by beating Ben Shelton 6-3, 7-6 (7-2), 5-7, 6-2 in the US Open final, reported dpa.

US hope Shelton, in his first major final, was backed by the vast majority of the partisan crowd but his nerves allowed Zverev to prevail.

He double faulted for both of Zverev's breaks in the first set, including in the opening game of the match, and lost his way in the second set tie-breaker.

Shelton spurned a break point early in the third, but eventually pounced in the last game of the set to force a fourth. However, the crowd favourite was immediately broken at the start of what proved to be the decider and Zverev repeated the trick for 5-2 before closing out the win.

Zverev, 29, won his first major at the French Open this year and then lost the Wimbledon final to Jannik Sinner.

With the Italian injured for the US Open, Carlos Alcaraz losing to Shelton in the quarters in the middle of the night and Novak Djokovic going out early, the German seized his chance. The 2021 Olympic champion previously lost the 2020 final in New York to Dominic Thiem.

Shelton was bidding to be the first US men's winner at Flushing Meadows since Andy Roddick in 2003. He was the first black man from the US to reach the final since Arthur Ashe in 1972. The stadium is named after Ashe.