The German Alexander Zverev offered himself a second final at the Masters 1000 in Paris on Saturday, four years after the one lost in 2020, where he will challenge the Russian Karen Khachanov or the last French survivor in the table, Ugo Humbert.
Thanks to his 6-3, 7-6 (7/4) victory in the semi-final against the Dane Holger Rune (13th in the ATP ranking), Zverev (3rd) will overtake the Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz to 2nd place in the world rankings. in the next ranking to be published on Monday.
Jannik Sinner's place as runner-up (1st) is “a fantastic bonus” for the German. “But at the end of the day, I'm playing a Masters 1000, a very prestigious tournament, that's why I play” more than for the No. 2 place, he confided on Friday.
The Hamburg giant, defeated in the final of the Paris Masters 1000 by Daniil Medvedev in 2020, nevertheless equals the best ranking of his career at 27, reached in June 2022.
“It’s my second final in Paris this year,” he rejoiced on the court, a few months after the one lost at Roland-Garros in the spring against Alcaraz.
On center court, Zverev was never really threatened by his opponent, winner of the tournament in 2022.
The German barely conceded a break in the second set to let Rune return to 5 games all. Zverev, however, quickly recovered to win the tie-break 7-4.
The Dane's defeat buries his last hopes of participating in the Turin Masters (November 10-17), which will bring together the eight best players of the season.
The name of the first finalist known, the spotlight is now on Ugo Humbert (18th), about to play his first semi-final in the Masters 1000 on Saturday afternoon, the most prestigious tournament category after the 4 Grand Slams.
Facing the left-handed Metz stands Karen Khachanov (21st), quick winner of Grigor Dimitrov (9th) Friday in the quarter-finals: 6-2, 6-3 in one hour.
– “Want to shine” –
The Russian, winner at Bercy in 2018, remains on a series of eleven victories in a row against French players.
Khachanov has also just won a title at the ATP 250 in Almaty (Kazakhstan) and a final at the ATP 500 in Vienna.
But the No. 1 in French tennis can boast of having eliminated the Spanish ogre Carlos Alcaraz, winner of two Grand Slams this year, in the round of 16.
This victory “gave him a lot of confidence”, insists his coach, former French player Jérémy Chardy.
“There are only two matches left so we have to keep dreaming,” he encourages again.
Humbert, beaten by Khachanov during their only confrontation, in 2021 at the Tokyo Olympic Games, dreams of becoming the first Frenchman to reach a Masters 1000 final in more than eight years (Gaël Monfils, Monte-Carlo 2016).
“As soon as I get on the court, I try to give myself another moment on this center,” the 26-year-old left-hander proclaimed earlier in the week.
The hours at Bercy are indeed numbered. From 2025, the tournament will move to La Défense Arena (Nanterre), west of the capital.
For Jérémy Chardy, the end of a story of almost forty years with the eastern Parisian venue is “a little extra” for Humbert. “He wants to shine at the last Bercy.”
dga-es-jan/dar
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