Alexander Zverev Earns 60th Win, Beats Halys in Shanghai

Alexander Zverev had to win it twice, but he got number 60. The top seed beat Quentin Halys 6-4, 6-7(8), 6-3 in the third round of the Rolex Shanghai Masters on Sunday, his 60th tour-level win of 2026, per the ATP Tour. He closed it with an ace down the T.

That puts Zverev in the fourth round and one step closer to the biggest prize left this season. Per the ATP, he can lock up year-end No. 1 by reaching the semifinals in Shanghai, with Jannik Sinner already done for 2026 because of a knee injury.

Zverev vs Halys: the serve did the work

Zverev never faced a break point in the two-hour, 17-minute match, per the ATP. He hit 19 aces against one double fault and landed 80 percent of his first serves, per Tennis Now. He broke Halys early in the first set and again early in the third, and that was enough.

The only scare came in the second-set tiebreak. Zverev had two match points and Halys saved both, then grabbed the set with a forehand volley winner. Zverev answered by breaking in the second game of the decider and holding firm from there.

This one was no fluke from Halys. Zverev is now 4-0 against the Frenchman, with all four meetings coming this year, and none of them have been easy. He needed two tiebreaks in Miami, four sets at Roland Garros and five sets during his US Open title run.

"He plays unbelievably aggressive and he serves incredible," Zverev said, per the ATP. "I think for his height, he's probably the best server in men's tennis right now."

A career year keeps rolling

This is the third time Zverev has won 60 matches in a season, after 60 in 2018 and 69 in 2024, per the ATP. He has already won Roland Garros and the US Open this year and reached the Wimbledon final.

"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. "I think that 60 wins doesn't tell the whole story."

Bublik up next

Zverev has won eight Masters 1000 titles, but never Shanghai. His best run here was the 2019 final. Next up is 19th seed Alexander Bublik, who outlasted Brandon Nakashima 6-7(7), 6-3, 7-6(5) and fired 16 aces across the last two sets, per the ATP.

Two big servers, one spot in the quarterfinals, and a year-end No. 1 race on the line. If Zverev serves like he did Sunday, Bublik is going to need a lot more than aces.