Alexander Zverev survived another five-set battle at the US Open on Thursday, defeating France’s Quentin Halys 6-4, 4-6, 7-6(3), 6-7(3), 6-3 to book his place in the third round.
The German, competing as the No. 1 seed at a Grand Slam for the first time, has now gone the distance in both of his matches in New York. His opening two rounds have lasted 10 sets and nearly 10 hours.
After overcoming Lorenzo Sonego in five sets in the opening round, Zverev again found himself pushed to the limit by Halys. The victory made him the first No. 1 seed in the Open Era to begin a Grand Slam with consecutive five-set wins.
Zverev was far from his best for long periods, often playing passively from the baseline and struggling with his forehand power. Halys also contributed to his own downfall, committing 63 unforced errors compared with 49 from the German.
Zverev claimed the opening set after securing the only break, but world No. 52 Halys responded strongly in the second to level the match and energise the Arthur Ashe Stadium crowd.
The Frenchman then raced into a 4-1 lead in the third set after breaking Zverev early. However, the top seed immediately fought back, winning three consecutive games before taking the ensuing tiebreak 7-3.
Halys refused to surrender and levelled the contest once again by winning the fourth-set tiebreak 7-3, forcing Zverev into another deciding set.
The German finally made the breakthrough in the fifth, moving 4-2 ahead with a powerful overhead smash at the net. He maintained his composure from there to close out the hard-fought victory.
Halys saved the first match point with an aggressive shot, but his next attempt sailed wide, allowing Zverev to celebrate another dramatic escape.
Zverev will next meet No. 25 seed Alejandro Tabilo in the third round.
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