Alexander Zverev a win away from elusive major title at Roland Garros after stopping Jakub Mensik

Amid one of the most unpredictable tennis events in recent memory, No. 2 seed Alexander Zverev once again finds himself a match away from winning the one title that isn’t among his 24 tour-level triumphs: a major trophy.

For the third consecutive year, the 29-year-old has made his way through to a Grand Slam final. Zverev returned to the Roland Garros title match for the second time in three years Friday, wrapping up a 7-5, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 victory over Jakub Mensik.

“I knew it was going to be the toughest challenge so far. I managed, I won, I’m happy,” summed up Zverev in his on-court interview.

With Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic among the favorites to lose in the first week, and later two-time runner-up Casper Ruud bowing out to Joao Fonseca in the round of 16, it left Zverev as the most experienced competitor left by a wide margin in a draw guaranteed to crown a new major champion. Mensik stepped out to contest his first Grand Slam semifinal, while Zverev was appearing in his 11th – having also advanced to the final four at this year’s Australian Open.

It appeared to be a difference maker over the first two sets, as Zverev erased all three break points against his serve while Mensik was broken three of the four times his opponent asked the question. The No. 26 seed effectively employed his drop shot to launch a brief comeback bid, but a sloppy opening service game enabled Zverev to immediately regain the momentum with a 2-0 lead in the fourth set.

Zverev, efficient throughout the tournament in conceding just two sets, crossed the finish line just past the three-hour mark to back up his Madrid win over Mensik. He finished with 42 winners, including 30 on the forehand side, in establishing himself as the superior baseline player on the day.

Two years ago at the clay-court major, Zverev fell to Carlos Alcaraz in a deciding set. In all three of his prior Grand Slam final defeats, the Hamburg native entered as the lower-ranked player.

That won’t be the case come Sunday, as the world No. 3 awaits the winner of an all-Italian semifinal between 14th-ranked Flavio Cobolli and 104th-ranked Matteo Arnaldi. Zverev and Cobolli notably split a pair of meetings at the start of the clay season in Munich (Cobolli) and Madrid (Zverev).z