Zverev beats Mensik at French Open, nears elusive Slam titleESPN News ServicesMultiple AuthorsJun 5, 2026, 11:50 AM ET
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Jannik Sinner lost early. Carlos Alcaraz withdrew due to injury.
So the pressure has been on Alexander Zverev to finally win an elusive Grand Slam title. Now the second-seeded German is one victory away from raising the French Open trophy.
Zverev reached the fourth major final of his career after beating 20-year-old Czech Jakub Mensik 7-5, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 in the Roland Garros semifinals Friday. The 27th-ranked Mensik, who was playing in his first Grand Slam semifinal, struggled with five double faults.
In Sunday’s final, Zverev will face 14th-ranked Flavio Cobolli or 104th-ranked Matteo Arnaldi, who were playing in an all-Italian semifinal later.
Zverev has been an overwhelming favorite for the title ever since the top-ranked Sinner struggled in the first week’s heat wave and wasted a two-set, 5-1 lead against Juan Manuel Cerundolo in the second round. Alcaraz, the two-time reigning champion, withdrew before the tournament with an injured right wrist.
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Zverev didn’t face an opponent in the top 25 of the ATP Rankings en route to making the final. He is the first player to make a major final without facing an ATP top-25 player since the last time Zverev did it at the 2020 US Open.
It will be Zverev’s second French Open final, having wasted a lead of two sets to one against Alcaraz in the 2024 championship match.
Zverev had an even bigger advantage — two sets to none — in the 2020 US Open final and lost that one to Dominic Thiem. He was beaten in straight sets by Sinner in the 2025 Australian Open final.
Despite overcast and windy conditions at the start Friday, the roof was open on Court Philippe Chatrier and both players struggled with mis-hits early on.
Mensik relied often on serve-and-volley tactics while Zverev was more solid from the baseline of the red clay court. Mensik double-faulted twice late in the first set, leading to the first break.
No Time Like The PresentAlexander Zverev is one win from his first Grand Slam title. He will be 29 years, 48 days old for Sunday’s final, and a win would make him the fifth-oldest first-time major winner among men in the Open era (since 1968).Oldest Men’s First-Time Major Winners, Open Era
PlayerTournamentAgeAndrés Gimeno1972 French34-306Andrés Gómez1990 French30-103Petr Korda1998 Australian30-9Goran Ivanisevic2001 Wimbledon29-299Stan Wawrinka2014 Australian28-304– ESPN ResearchZverev broke again early in the second after running down a drop shot from Mensik and went ahead 5-2 when Mensik double-faulted again.Early in the third, Mensik had his neck treated by a trainer and then left the court for a medical timeout.When play resumed, Zverev moved Mensik off the court with well-angled shots, and the Czech player threw his racket in desperation at a ball he knew he couldn’t reach.There were more shouts for “Sascha,” Zverev’s nickname, but the crowd attempted to help Mensik back into the match with chants of “Let’s go, Mensik, let’s go.”When Mensik produced two well-executed drop shots to finally break Zverev’s serve and take a 4-2 lead in the third, he pumped his fist as the crowd came to life.But when Mensik rushed the net after a slice serve to the deuce court midway through the fourth set and Zverev used his long wingspan to produce a looping cross-court return that dipped over the net beyond his reach, Mensik just smiled — perhaps realizing that Zverev simply had too much game for him.Allegations made against ZverevMoments after Zverev’s last Grand Slam final in Australia in 2025, a person in the stadium yelled out the names of two of his ex-girlfriends who accused him of physical abuse.One case was resolved following an agreement between German prosecutors, lawyers for Zverev and his former partner. The ATP Tour investigated another case and concluded there was insufficient evidence.The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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