Alexander Zverev has reached the final of the ATP tournament in Paris and has the chance to win the seventh Masters title of his career. The 2021 Olympic tennis champion showed another strong performance in the 6:3, 7:6 (7:4) against the Dane Holger Rune.
In this form he is the favorite in the final of the Masters 1000 tournament on Sunday. By winning the semi-finals, Zverev will overtake Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz in the world rankings shortly before the season finale at the ATP Finals in Turin in mid-November and take second place.
As he did the day before against the Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas, Zverev was initially able to rely on his serve. Although the first service didn’t always come with a high rate, the 27-year-old from Hamburg showed strong nerves in the key moments of the opening set.
Zverev managed the first break to make it 3-1 and also survived critical phases. He fended off two break points in the first round and celebrated taking the lead in the set after 45 minutes.
Even after that, Zverev didn’t let up. He took the serve from Rune to make it 4:3 – but the 21-year-old managed to equalize again to make it 5:5. In the tie-break, Zverev used his second match point with a backhand volley and celebrated. He is in his twelfth final at a Masters tournament, the category below the Grand Slams. So far this season he has only won the tournament in Rome. (dpa)
