Zverev, Shelton and Tien Lead Men Into US Open Round of 16

Zverev Sets the Tone with a Statement Win

If there was any doubt about who the man to beat is at the 2026 US Open, Alexander Zverev spent Saturday afternoon erasing it. The German top seed dismantled 25th seed Alejandro Tabilo 6-2, 7-6(2), 6-2 in a performance built on precision groundstrokes and a serving display that gave the Chilean no angles to work with. It was a world apart from the five-set, 2:15 am grind against Quentin Halys that had defined Zverev's earlier week — and all the more impressive for it.

Zverev carries the top seed this fortnight only because Jannik Sinner withdrew with a knee injury before the tournament began. The German has responded to the elevated expectation with two dominant performances in succession. He enters the Round of 16, where he will face Italian 21st seed Luciano Darderi, as the clear betting favourite for the title.

Shelton Edges a Thriller; Tien Goes the Distance

Eighth seed Ben Shelton required four sets to put away Denis Shapovalov, but the match was closer than the 7-6(3), 6-7(5), 6-3, 6-4 scoreline suggests. Shapovalov, dangerous from the first ball when his game clicks, forced a second-set tiebreak and threatened to drag the match into a fifth. Shelton steadied, broke at the right moments, and closed it out with the kind of composure that has characterised his week.

The grittiest result of the day came from 14th seed Learner Tien, whose 6-3, 1-6, 6-7(2), 6-3, 6-4 win over 17th seed Jakub Mensik stretched across five energy-sapping sets. Tien dropped the second and third before refocusing to win the fourth and, ultimately, the fifth in what was a genuine test of mental resilience. He now faces Karen Khachanov, who was far more clinical — dispatching Benjamin Bonzi 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 to complete his own passage to the last 16.

Tsitsipas Rebounds After Slow Start

Stefanos Tsitsipas dropped the opening set to Jiri Lehecka but showed the kind of adjustability that has kept him competitive at the top level for years. After conceding the first set 2-6, he shifted gears and produced 6-1, 7-6(3), 6-1 tennis to book a Round of 16 showdown against Shelton. The power-versus-variety contest between the big-serving American and the varied Greek should be one of Sunday's most watchable matches.

Sinner ends 2026 season with knee injury, will miss Turin and Davis Cup

The Full Men's Round of 16 Picture

Saturday's results completed the men's Round of 16 draw, and it is one of the more intriguing line-ups in recent US Open memory. Alongside Zverev versus Darderi and Shelton versus Tsitsipas, the draw features Carlos Alcaraz against Tommy Paul — the most anticipated contest on Sunday's schedule — as well as the all-upsets quarter where Francisco Cerundolo meets Alexander Blockx, two players who ended the campaigns of seeded opponents in dramatic fashion on the same day.

Daniil Medvedev will meet Frances Tiafoe, Alex Michelsen faces Tomás Martín Etcheverry, and French lucky loser Arthur Géa — who has made Open Era history simply by being in this round — meets Botic van de Zandschulp. With Sinner absent and several other seeds already departed, the US Open men's title is genuinely there for multiple players to claim.