The German eased past Italy’s Luciano Darderi in straight sets after being pushed to five sets in his opening two matches.
Top seed Alexander Zverev reached the US Open quarter-finals on Monday with a convincing straight-sets victory over Italy’s Luciano Darderi.
The Alexander Zverev victory saw the German defeat the 21st seed 6-2, 6-2, 7-6 (7/3) in two hours and 30 minutes on Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Zverev had been taken to five sets in each of his first two matches, with both encounters finishing in the early hours. His latest win provided a much quicker route into the next round.
“I don’t know what to do with myself because it’s before midnight,” Zverev joked after the match. “Compared to the first two matches, the level has been going up.”
The 29-year-old French Open champion dominated from the start, taking advantage of Darderi’s struggles on serve to secure two early breaks and establish a 3-0 lead.
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Darderi, who has never progressed beyond the fourth round at a Grand Slam, was unable to recover as Zverev comfortably closed out the opening set.
The German maintained the pressure in the second set, again breaking twice early to move 3-0 ahead before taking a commanding two-set lead.
Darderi produced a stronger display in the third set, unleashing powerful forehands and saving four break points in the 11th game to force a tie-break.
Zverev, however, remained composed behind his serve. He moved 5-2 ahead with a powerful delivery before a forehand winner into the corner gave him match point. He sealed the victory with his 13th ace.
“I thought my level was very consistent,” Zverev said.
He praised Darderi’s performance in the final set, saying he had rarely seen a player hit the ball with such sustained power.
Zverev will now face Dutch veteran Botic van de Zandschulp in the quarter-finals.
Van de Zandschulp produced one of the day’s biggest comebacks, recovering from two sets down to defeat France’s Arthur Gea 3-6, 6-7 (0/7), 7-6 (9/7), 7-6 (7/3), 6-4.
The 30-year-old Dutchman saved a match point in the third set before completing the comeback after more than five hours on court.
The 21-year-old Gea had been attempting to become the first men’s lucky loser to reach a Grand Slam quarter-final. He entered the main draw after 18th seed Casper Ruud withdrew with a back injury.
Gea, ranked 87th in the world, came through qualifying but saw his historic run end against van de Zandschulp.
The match lasted five hours and 13 minutes, narrowly missing the record for the longest US Open match. Dan Evans holds that record after his five-hour, 35-minute victory over Karen Khachanov in the first round in 2024.
“I have no clue actually,” van de Zandschulp said when asked how he managed the comeback. “Crazy comeback — five hours, 15 minutes, still standing, so that’s a good thing.”
Van de Zandschulp said reaching the quarter-finals felt particularly significant after several difficult years and a recent improvement in his form.
He also has a history of major US Open upsets. In 2024, he stunned then third seed Carlos Alcaraz in straight sets in the second round.
The Dutchman will now face Zverev for a place in the US Open semi-finals.
