Alexander Zverev forced the distance but dominant serving display keeps Quentin Halys at bay

Alexander Zverev continues to remain untroubled on court at the Shanghai Masters. It was a closely fought battle against Quentin Halys, but managed to eventually win it 6-4, 6-7(8), 6-3.

A title in Shanghai will put him within touching distance of the coveted No.1 spot, and he is looking good for it with his performances on court. Impenetrable on serve, Zverev made it very hard for Halys to create anything, not even conceding a break point in the match which dragged on longer than he would have hoped.

In his top half of the draw, another big name has fallen. Already Novak Djokovic was out, but US Open finalist Ben Shelton has departed in a frustrating loss against Arthur Gea. This may have inspired Halys to produce something similar against the highest ranked player in action, but Zverev has done this brilliantly in the big tournaments. He comes through another tricky test to continue his title aspirations.

It is an event he has never won, but his hopes have since been boosted. Just a solitary break, which was worked very hard for, was needed for the first set. A tiebreak was needed to settle the second set, and Halys survived match points to force a decider. Zverev asserted his dominance and got the job done.

A fourth meeting in 2026 would take place between the two, with Zverev having won all three of the prior contests. The first game would take nine minutes, with seven consecutive break points having been created by the German. He finally took one of them to take a lead and was in command for the rest of the set.

Nine minutes later, the score was 3-1, with 12 consecutive points having been won on serve. In total, Zverev dropped just two points when beginning the point in the first set. He was totally dominant on serve, a huge weapon in his arsenal.

Halys was also serving well following that opening game blip and forced his opponent to serve it out. Another hold to love followed, and Zverev was in cruise control.

The second serve was very heavily in favour of the player on serve. While the games were more closely contested, the duo were ticking off the games with a 19th consecutive hold confirmed by Zverev to level at 5-5.

In this time, no break points were created. That same trend continued in the next two games and a tiebreak for the second set was needed. Two match points came and went for Zverev, with the courageous Halys battling back in contention with his second set point.

The two-time Grand Slam champion was not waiting around to get his nose back in front, finally breaking once more to go 2-0 to the good. Halys was unable to muster up any response, and the enthralling third round contest was finally concluded, ending with an ace.