US Open: Zverev Survives Five-Set Thriller as Pegula, Fritz and Medvedev Advance

World No. 2 Alexander Zverev narrowly escaped a major upset at the US Open after surviving a marathon first-round battle against Italy’s Lorenzo Sonego. Zverev eventually prevailed 6-4, 3-6, 6-7 (7-9), 7-5, 6-4 after nearly five hours on court. Having lost the second and third sets, the German found himself under severe pressure but recovered to force a deciding set and secured the crucial break in the fifth. Zverev finished with 12 aces and 61 winners, while Sonego’s 43 unforced errors proved costly. Fifth seed Flavio Cobolli and ninth seed Taylor Fritz also advanced, while Lorenzo Musetti, Francisco Cerundolo, Mattia Bellucci and Daniil Medvedev progressed in the men’s draw.

In the women’s singles, third seed Jessica Pegula comfortably defeated fellow American Sofia Kenin to reach the third round. Second seed Elena Rybakina, fourth seed Coco Gauff and fifth seed Mirra Andreeva also made progress. Madison Keys, Belinda Bencic, Elisabetta Cocciaretto and Elise Mertens were among the other winners. Meanwhile, French veteran Gael Monfils marked his 40th birthday with a comeback victory over Paraguay’s Daniel Vallejo. The win made him the oldest player since Jimmy Connors to win a US Open singles match at the age of 40. Monfils has already announced that this will be his final Grand Slam tournament and that he is playing his last season.