Despite Throwing His Racket, Zverev Cruises Into US Open Round of 16

Alexander Zverev avoided another exhausting late-night battle at the US Open, defeating Chile’s Alejandro Tabilo 6-2, 7-6 (7-2), 6-2 to reach the round of 16.

The French Open champion needed 2 hours 25 minutes and finished at 1:09 a.m. He briefly lost his composure in the third set, throwing his racket against the wall behind the baseline at Arthur Ashe Stadium, but otherwise produced a commanding performance.

Zverev had needed a combined nine and a half hours to win his first two matches in New York. This time, he started quickly, breaking twice to lead 3-0 and taking the opening set in 38 minutes. When he landed his first serve, he won every point in the opening set.

Tabilo struggled to settle in, despite support from Chilean fans chanting, “Chi-Chi-Chi, Le-Le-Le, Viva Chile.” Zverev broke again early in the second set, but then dropped serve and had to save two set points. Tabilo made too many errors in the tiebreak, leaving Zverev two sets ahead.

The victory was Zverev’s 16th consecutive win over a left-hander. He will next play Italy’s Luciano Darderi, the 21st seed. His route to a second Grand Slam title has also opened further after Taylor Fritz, Flavio Cobolli, Félix Auger-Aliassime and Novak Djokovic were eliminated. Jannik Sinner, the world’s top-ranked player, is absent through injury.