NEW YORK — Alexander Zverev has the No. 1 seed in a Grand Slam tournament for the first time and the belief that comes from finally winning a major title. Then he nearly had a quick exit from the U.S. Open. The French Open champion rallied just in time to edge Lorenzo Sonego 6-4, 3-6, 6-7 (7), 7-5, 6-4 in a match that lasted four hours, 52 minutes and ended early Wednesday morning. Two nights after No. 4 seed and 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic was eliminated with a five-set loss, Zverev nearly became another top player ousted from an event that top-ranked Jannik Sinner had to miss because of a right knee injury. That moved the No. 2-ranked Zverev up to the No. 1 seed in the U.S. Open, and if he had lost he would have been the first man on the top line to fall in the first round of a major since Lleyton Hewitt lost to Ivo Karlovic at Wimbledon in 2003. “I’m happy that I won this kind of battle,” Zverev said. “This is exactly the match that I needed.” Coco Gauff had an easier time, opening her quest for a second U.S. Open title by beating Zeynep Sonmez 6-3, 6-4, regaining control midway through the second set after her opponent from Turkiye picked up her play. “I know that I can raise my level if I need to do and I like to challenge my opponent to let them keep up the level the whole match,” Gauff said. “And if they do, I clap my hands and I walk off court with my head held high.” Instead, she’s walking into a second-round match against either Paula Badosa or Daria Kasatkina. Alex Eala and Gael Monfils make for a spirited night on a damp day On a rainy day in New York, nothing could dampen the spirits inside Louis Armstrong Stadium. First, Gael Monfils won on his 40th birthday to extend his Grand Slam career, with fans singing happy birthday to the Frenchman afterward. He was followed by No. 17 Alex Eala, who beat Mary Stoiana 6-1, 6-2 in front of her many Filipino fans. Gauff was battling serving woes when she arrived in Flushing Meadows last year and began working with a new coach on the eve of the tournament. There wasn’t time to fix her problems and Gauff had to battle though a rocky opener before getting easily ousted by Naomi Osaka in the fourth round. Gauff returned this year with the confidence and momentum of a serious contender, winning the title in Cincinnati after semifinal runs at Wimbledon and Toronto. She also won the hard-court tournament in Cincinnati in 2023 before going on to become the first American teenager to win the U.S. Open title since Serena Williams in 1999, topping Aryna Sabalenka in the final. Cobolli and Sakkari make dramatic afternoon comebacks Flavio Cobolli rallied from two sets down to avoid an early upset on the men’s side, and his wasn’t even the most dramatic comeback Tuesday. Maria Sakkari fell behind 6-2, 4-0 once she was finally able to get on the court after the rain stopped, then the No. 32 seed rallied to edge Robin Montgomery 2-6, 7-5, 6-2. “Just kept telling myself that everything is possible and just try to get myself in a good place mentally and just try to be a little bit more positive, try to make more balls, get myself into the match,” said Sakkari, who reached the U.S. Open and Wimbledon semifinals in 2021. “Because, I mean, everyone’s very good in tennis nowadays, but specifically that girl I played today doesn’t have the experience that I do. So I just told myself, let’s try and hang in there, try and make more balls, and it worked.” Cobolli, the No. 5 seed and French Open runner-up, beat Francisco Comesana 3-6, 2-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-4, finishing his match that lasted four hours, 12 minutes not long after some sun had broken through the clouds and allowed play to start on all the outside courts. Cobolli made his first career two-set comeback to avoid joining No. 4 seed Novak Djokovic and No. 10 Arthur Fils among early losers in a men’s draw that was already missing top-ranked Jannik Sinner, Cobolli’s fellow Italian who was unable to play in the tournament because of a right knee injury. He said he took a bathroom break after the second set and decided to change everything he was wearing. “In Grand Slams it’s never done. You have to fight until the last point,” Cobolli said. French Open champion Mirra Andreeva and 2024 U.S. Open runner-up Taylor Fritz had smooth sailing. Fritz, the No. 9 seed, rolled to a 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 victory over 18-year-old fellow American Darwin Blanch. Andreev beat Janice Tjen 6-2, 6-2. Rain delays some matches and pushes others back another day Showers that began Monday night and would possibly be on and off through the middle of the week delayed play on all the outer courts, allowing for action only in Ashe and Armstrong, which have retractable roofs. Rain returned Tuesday night, again restricting play to two courts and meaning some first-round matches won’t be completed before Wednesday. Madison Keys, the No. 22 seed, beat 19-year-old Alina Korneeva 7-5, 6-4 in the leadoff match in Ashe. The 2017 U.S. Open runner-up was knocked off in the first round last year in Flushing Meadows. “It’s always tough playing someone young and up and coming, and they’re going after their shots,” Keys said. “And it’s so hard to play a first round of a Grand Slam, so nervous and just wanting to do so well. So, really happy I was able to kind of fight through that and win today.” Play finally began outdoors in the middle of the afternoon, when No. 2 seed Elena Rybakina beat Thea Frodin 6-3, 6-2. Frodin, a 17-year-old from California, was the body double for actor Demi Singleton, who played Serena Williams, in the 2021 film “King Richard.” No. 12 seed Belinda Bencic, who teamed with Cobolli to reach the mixed doubles final, lost to Yulia Putintseva in three sets. Brian Mahoney, The Associated Press
