The broadcast peaked at 4.0 million viewers between 5:30 p.m. and 5:45 p.m. ET, establishing a new benchmark for ESPN’s tennis coverage.
Earlier on Saturday, the women’s championship, won by Elena Rybakina over Aryna Sabalenka, drew an average audience of 2.7 million and peaked at 3.2 million, marking a 13 % year‑over‑year increase and the network’s strongest women’s final since 2023.
Together, the men’s and women’s finals averaged 3.0 million viewers, up 9 % from the previous year, while the Friday night men’s semifinal between Shelton and Frances Tiafoe attracted an average 3.1 million viewers and a peak of 3.7 million, the largest men’s semifinal audience on record for ESPN.
Zverev’s earlier semifinal win over Karen Khachanov averaged 1.2 million viewers; the two semifinals combined for an average of 2.2 million, a 19 % rise over last year’s figures.
Across ESPN’s family of networks—ABC, ESPN and ESPN2—the two‑week tournament averaged 1.2 million viewers, a 4 % increase year over year, making it the most‑watched US Open on ESPN since 2022. Opening‑day coverage set a network record with 914,000 average viewers, up 13 % YoY.
Round‑by‑round numbers show continued growth: the second round averaged 834,000 viewers, the third round 1.1 million (up 27 % YoY), and ESPN2’s Saturday daytime telecast reached 1.0 million, a 31 % jump, while its prime‑time window drew 1.1 million, up 43 %.
A notable viewership boost came from the primetime doubles match featuring Serena and Venus Williams, which attracted an average audience of 1.2 million and peaked at 2.2 million during their three‑set loss to Hao‑Ching Chan and Maya Joint.
Through the women’s semifinals, the tournament’s overall average settled at 1.0 million viewers, up 2 % YoY, and the women’s semifinals themselves drew 2.2 million, a 24 % increase and the most‑watched women’s semifinal in ESPN history.