Zverev passes Van de Zandschulp test to reach US Open semis

Alexander Zverev continued his strong progress towards a second Grand Slam title by defeating Botic van de Zandschulp 6-2, 7-5, 6-1 at the US Open. The German tennis star, who is the only remaining Grand Slam winner in the men's draw, faces Russian Karen Khachanov in the semi-finals. Zverev, who won the French Open earlier this year, had a slow start to the tournament, but he has steadily improved his game.

"In other tournaments I would be out in the first round, but here I can fight back and play best of five sets, play 4-1/2 hours," Zverev said. Despite early service issues with multiple double faults, Zverev broke van de Zandschulp's serve in the fifth game of the first set and went on to win the set. In the third set, Zverev capitalized on van de Zandschulp's forehand errors and broke early to take control of the match.

This victory extends Zverev's winning streak in Grand Slam matches to 23 this year, surpassing Boris Becker's record of 22 in 1989. Zverev will next face Khachanov, who they previously faced in the gold medal match at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.