Sunday at Arthur Ashe

Alexander Zverev plays Ben Shelton for the 2026 US Open men's title at 2pm ET / 7pm BST, which is 10am AEST on Monday in Australia.

Third straight slam final

Zverev, the German top seed, has now reached his third grand slam final in a row. Shelton, a left hander from Atlanta, is chasing a first major.

He started slowly

Zverev needed five sets in each of his first two rounds and spent over five hours on court beating Lorenzo Sonego.

Then he found his range

His 107-minute dismantling of Karen Khachanov in the semi-finals was a fourth straight-sets win in a row in New York.

The serve fixed itself

Since finally winning a major at the French Open this year, the 29-year-old has turned a serve that was a real weakness into a weapon.

“a serve that has gone from significant weakness to serious strength”

A final he owes himself

Six years ago Zverev led his first slam final by two sets and served for the match against Dominic Thiem. He lost. This is the rematch with history.

Shelton already made history

He is the first black American man in a US Open final since Arthur Ashe in 1972. A win would end a 23-year wait for a US men's major champion.

Serving like a machine

Shelton came from a set down to beat Frances Tiafoe with 75% first serves in and 20 aces. He beat defending champion Carlos Alcaraz the same way.

Zverev owns the head-to-head

Five matches, five Zverev wins, most recently in straight sets at the 2025 ATP Finals in Turin. Shelton has to beat a man he never has.

“Zverev has a 100% record against Shelton”

Free in Australia

Channel 9 and 9Gem carry the final free to air, streaming on 9Now. Stan Sport has every match for AU$20/month on top of a Stan plan.

Where to watch elsewhere

US: ABC and ESPN, via antenna, ESPN Select from $13.99, Sling, Fubo, YouTube TV or Hulu. UK: Sky Sports or NOW. NZ: ESPN on Disney+. Canada: TSN.