Maria Sharapova won the US Open twenty years ago. This year the tournament let her hand the women’s trophy to Elena Rybakina, who had just beaten defending champion Aryna Sabalenka 6-4, 5-7, 6-2 for her first title in New York.
It was Rybakina’s third Grand Slam title and her second major of 2026. The final went the distance and swung back and forth, and Sabalenka, who arrived as the defending champion, could not hold on.
A road with few easy rounds
The women’s draw never settled into a script. All four quarterfinals went to three sets. Zheng Qinwen came back from 0-5 down in a set in two consecutive matches and still won both the sets and the matches.
On the men’s side, the upsets came early. Four-time champion Novak Djokovic went out in the first round, only the third time in his career that he has lost an opener at a major. Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz did not keep his title either. He lost in the quarterfinals to Ben Shelton in a fifth-set tiebreak that did not finish until 3:33am local time, in what was the match of the tournament.
Botic van de Zandschulp needed 5 hours 13 minutes to beat Arthur Gea in the fourth round, the fourth longest match in the event’s history.
Zverev takes the men’s title
Shelton reached the final by beating fellow American Frances Tiafoe in the semifinals, and before that match the crowd at Arthur Ashe Stadium marked the 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks, with a musical performance and a giant flag unfurled on court. In the final Alexander Zverev beat Shelton 6-3, 7-6(7-2), 5-7, 6-2. It was his second major title, and the first time since 1989 that a German has won the men’s singles here.
Elsewhere, Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend beat Ashlyn Krueger and Robin Montgomery in the women’s doubles final, completing a team Career Grand Slam, Siniakova’s second and Townsend’s first. Karolina Muchova and Jakub Mensik took the mixed doubles over Belinda Bencic and Flavio Cobolli.
The money was a record. Total player compensation reached $108 million, up 21% on 2025. Each singles champion collected $5.5 million, the runners-up $2.8 million, and a first-round loser still took home $140,000.
