sascha zverev is back in a Grand Slam final after beating Jakub Menšík 7-5, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 on Friday at the French Open. The No. 2 seed reached his fourth major final with the win. Menšík, the 20-year-old No. 26 seed from the Czech Republic, pushed him through a swingy third set before Zverev closed it out.
Zverev Survives Menšík’s Run
Menšík broke Zverev for the first time in the match and went up 4-2 in the third set. He then held three set points at 5-3, 40-0, but Zverev kept the match from slipping away. Menšík also went off court for medical treatment early in that set.
Zverev said after the match that he felt mostly in control by the end of the third set. “I still felt like I was mostly in control (at the end of the third set) and that if I get back to having chances and if I use them once or twice, I will get back into the match and be the winner in the end,” he said. “That’s all I told myself. A five-set match is long.”
Roland Garros Fourth-Set Start
He backed that belief immediately. Zverev broke Menšík at the start of the fourth set and opened a 2-0 lead, ending the Czech teenager’s charge before it could build again. The scoreline showed how quickly the match changed once Zverev held firm through the third-set pressure.
Menšík gave Zverev a clear read on the challenge afterward. “Sascha is third in the world for a reason,” he said. “He’s the guy who doesn’t allow you to be longer time in your side of the momentum. So even if I had some great games and had some opportunities, still, with his huge serves and basically, strong game from the baseline, it was super difficult for me to attack him, and of course, as well, to find the momentum and take the momentum on my side.”
The result puts Zverev one match from a French Open title and adds another deep run to a major resume that now includes four Grand Slam finals. For Menšík, the semifinal ended after a third set in which he had the better stretch but could not turn the break, the treatment stop, or the three set points into a longer fight.
