During the final day of the Laver Cup, Alexander Zverev defeated Learner Tien, securing a sixth championship victory for Team Europe.
Following a frustrating loss to Team World’s Alex de Minaur on the second day, the US Open champion bounced back to claim a comfortable 7-6 (7-3) 6-3 triumph over Tien at London’s O2 Arena.
Following Carlos Alcaraz’s crucial performance that kept the European team in the running after the second-day setback, Flavio Cobolli and Jakub Mensik defeated De Minaur and Taylor Fritz in doubles action to increase their advantage ahead of Zverev’s decisive win.
These consecutive victories elevated Europe’s score to the necessary 13 points for the title, making another appearance by Alcaraz unnecessary.
“It has been two years since my last victory in a Laver Cup match, so I am thrilled to get the win today,” Zverev remarked.
“Immense credit goes to Team World, who fought hard until the very end and were the reigning champions. Our squad has fantastic synergy, and this was truly a collective achievement.
“There is no greater sensation in sports than succeeding as a group. In tennis, we simply do not experience this often enough.”
Making his first appearance for Team World, 20-year-old American Tien showed resilience in the opening set to push it to a tiebreak, but world number two Zverev dominated the subsequent set to wrap up the match in one hour and 49 minutes.
Having contributed to every one of Team Europe’s six Laver Cup titles, Zverev also holds the record for the highest number of singles victories at the tournament with eight.
