Alexander Zverev left baffled after ‘stolen’ racket causes hilarious US Open meltdown

Alexander Zverev completed the action on Day 11 of the US Open with a fine straight sets win over Botic Van de Zandschulp. It was not the most stressful affair, but that did not stop Zverev to panic when he thought that someone had nicked his racket, only to realise that it had been in his bag the whole time.

The incident occurred as he was set to serve for the first set, a very crucial time for the German despite having a very commendable lead on court at the time. Zverev had won the last four games and secured a two-break lead, but the job was not yet done.

He wandered over to his chair to change his racket only to realise that it was not where he left it. A perplexed and confused Zverev instantly put his arms out and turned to umpire James Keothavong in a fit of frenzy as he queried where his racket went.

It seemed that he was accusing someone of taking it as he showcased a bemused expression on his face. He again explained that he left the racket on his chair with a sarcastic smile before delving into his bag.

He opened one of his zips and pulled out another racket. It is common for tennis players to have numerous pieces of equipment incase it breaks or for a tactical switch-up. In this instance, this was the racket a relieved Zverev had sought after.

The Roland Garros champion shared a smile with Keothavong mixed with an apology as the pair found the funny side to the silly blunder. He then sat down and waited to return to court. He soon did and served out the set with a second set point. Zverev would rebuff a set point in the second set as his Dutch opponent pushed him, but in the end the 29-year-old comfortably breezed through 6-2, 7-5, 6-1.

Similar to the French Open earlier in the year, Zverev is the man to beat. He is the only player ranked in the top eight of the ATP rankings heading into the tournament to avoid a surprising upset in the build up to this point, happily watching on as all his opponents in his side of the draw came unstuck.

Lorenzo Sonego and Quentin Halys were both dealt with in five sets before Zverev started to really hit his stride. Three matches on the bounce now where the number one seed has not dropped a set, seeing off Alejandro Tabilo, Luciano Darderi and Van de Zandschulp.

The number 21 seed, Darderi, was the only seed Zverev has come across in this whole tournament in a remarkable stroke of luck. At the end of the day, you can only play who you are drawn against and he has taken full advantage of this.

This trend continues into the semi-finals following the demise of Alexander Blockx. He was not physically capable of keeping up with Karen Khachanov his quarter-final match, exiting after going two sets and a break down.

This means the World No.50 will clash against Zverev. After failing to defend the points from his Canadian Open final run last year, Khachanov plummeted down the rankings with a poor campaign finally starting to catch up with him. Nevertheless, he has finally shifted into a higher gear at Flushing Meadows and is reaping the rewards.

It will be a tough contest for Zverev who has won six of their nine showdowns, but he will be the favourite to prevail. The winner will take on either Ben Shelton or Frances Tiafoe in the US Open final. These contests will be played on Friday, 11th September.