Alexander Zverev did not drop his serve once in a 6-4, 6-7(8), 6-3 third-round win over Quentin Halys at the Rolex Shanghai Masters on Sunday. The scoreline is tighter than the match: Zverev faced zero break points across two hours and 17 minutes before pulling clear in the decider.
The victory was Zverev’s 60th on the ATP Tour this season, only the third time he has reached that mark in a year. The ATP noted it follows 60 wins in 2018 and 69 in 2024.
What makes this 60 feel different is the hardware. Zverev won the French Open and the US Open for his first two Grand Slam titles and lost the Wimbledon final. The ATP ranks him World No. 2.
One run from year-end No. 1
Zverev can clinch the 2026 year-end No. 1 ranking by reaching the Shanghai semi-finals, the ATP has confirmed. From the fourth round, that is two more wins.
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Next up is Alexander Bublik, the 19th seed, who edged Brandon Nakashima 6-7(7), 6-3, 7-6(5) in his third-round match.
Picking his places
Zverev framed his season as a question of timing rather than volume.
“I feel like this year I’ve been picking my places where I want to peak, and I feel like I did that quite well,” he said.
Halys took him to five sets at the US Open in September before Zverev went on to lift that trophy. The Frenchman has now lost to him in all four of their 2026 meetings, and Zverev credited his serve.
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“He’s probably the best server in men’s tennis right now for his height,” he said.
Shanghai is the one that got away
For all his 2026 silverware, the Rolex Shanghai Masters trophy is not on Zverev’s shelf. His best result at the event remains a final in 2019.
The defending champion is Valentin Vacherot, who won the 2025 title ranked 204 in the world and beat his cousin Arthur Rinderknech in the final. Zverev meets Bublik next for a place in the quarter-finals and a step closer to year-end No. 1.
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