Alexander Zverev's racket string lashings left Ben Shelton nearly falling out of his shoes on attempted returns in Sunday's 2026 U.S. Open finale.

Alexander Zverev of Germany hits a backhand return to Ben Shelton in the second set of the 2026 U.S. Open men's singles final Sunday in Flushing, N.Y. Photo by Corey Sipkin/UPI UPI Alexander Zverev of Germany hits a backhand return to Ben Shelton in the second set of the 2026 U.S. Open men's singles final Sunday in Flushing, N.Y. Photo by Corey Sipkin/UPI UPI Alexander Zverev of Germany hits a return to Ben Shelton in the first set of the 2026 U.S. Open men's singles final Sunday in Flushing, N.Y. Photo by Corey Sipkin/UPI UPI Alexander Zverev of Germany hits a backhand return to Ben Shelton in the second set of the 2026 U.S. Open men's singles final Sunday in Flushing, N.Y. Photo by Corey Sipkin/UPI UPI Ben Shelton reacts after losing a point against Alexander Zverev of Germany in the third set of the 2026 U.S. Open men's singles final Sunday in Flushing, N.Y. Photo by Corey Sipkin/UPI UPI

Sept. 13 (UPI) -- Alexander Zverev's racket string lashings left Ben Shelton nearly falling out of his shoes on attempted returns in Sunday's 2026 U.S. Open men's singles final.

The second-ranked German rarely looked rattled in the 6-3, 7-6(2), 5-7, 6-2 victory en route to his second Grand Slam crown.

Shelton, the first Black American man to appear in the U.S. Open final since Arthur Ashe in 1972, piled up errors and failed to consistently threaten Zverev's impeccable services in front of a heavily supportive crowd in Flushing, N.Y.

Shelton started the match with a double fault on a break point, losing his first service game. He never fully unearthed momentum, as Zverev crushed accurate serves and flaunted his brawny backhand throughout the 3-hour, 33-minute match at Arthur Ashe Stadium.

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With the win, Zverev cashed in for $5.5 million and improved his record to 25-2 in Grand Slam play in 2026, including his victory at the 2026 French Open. He improved to 6-0 against Shelton, who took home $2.8 million from his Grand Slam final debut.

The 6-foot-6 Zverev deployed a heavy depth defensive approach to neutralize Shelton's typically blistering serves. He often redirecting threats while triggering breathless tactics from the No. 9 American, who slid, slipped and skidded on the blue court until he eventually lost electricity.

Zverev edged Shelton 4-1 in break point conversions and totaled just 31 unforced errors, compared to Shelton's 47. Shelton held advantages in aces (10-9) and winners (47-35).

Zverev broke Shelton twice in the first set, including for set point. He won the second set through a tiebreak, which featured a duo of mini-breaks of the American's serve. Shelton finally found life in the third set, which he ended by breaking Zverev for the fourth time in his last five matches.

But he appeared drained in the final set, which he started with a broken serve. Zverev broke Shelton for the fourth and final time in the seventh game of the fourth set.

He clinched championship point when Shelton sent his final return -- off a 137-mph serve -- well past the baseline.

With his performance at the 2026 U.S. Open, Shelton will jump from No. 9 to a career-best No. 5 in Monday's ATP Tour singles rankings update. Zverev will hold onto his No. 2 spot, behind top-ranked Jannik Sinner of Italy and in front of No. 3 Carlos Alcaraz of Spain.