A Frenchman in the final at home. In the semi-finals of the Masters 1000 at Paris-Bercy, Saturday November 2, Ugo Humbert beat Karen Khachanov (6-7 [6-8]6-4, 6-3) after a long, hotly contested fight of almost three hours. The 18th in the world and French number one, winner of Carlos Alcaraz in the round of 16, continues his magnificent epic by qualifying for the first Masters 1000 final of his career where he will face Alexander Zverev (3rd). Ugo Humbert becomes the first Frenchman to play for the title at Bercy in 13 years and the final lost by Jo-Wilfried Tsonga against Roger Federer.
Under the eyes of Guy Forget, the first French winner of Paris-Bercy in 1991, and Henri Lecomte, double semi-finalist of the tournament in 1986 and 1987, Messin had nevertheless given up the first set in the tie-break. More comfortable in the exchange than Karen Khachanov, and precise at the net, the Frenchman managed to equalize the score in the second set.
1/2 final: The feat of Ugo Humbert who qualifies for the final
He did it. Ugo Humbert becomes the first Frenchman to qualify for the final of the Rolex Paris Masters since Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in 2011. He won in three sets (6-7, 6-4, 6-3) against Karen Khachanov at out of strength at the end of the match in this semi-final of the Rolex Paris Masters. He will meet Alexander Zverev in the final.
In a decisive final set, the debates were again very close at the start, before the Russian was physically weakened. Less mobile, the 21st in the world tried to shorten the rallies and lost his rhythm in the games. Ugo Humbert never panicked. He therefore managed to break it at the best of times (4-3) and was able to confirm his exceptional week by validating his ticket for his first Masters 1000 final in his career.
To conclude in style, Sunday in the final (3 p.m., live on France 4 and france.tv), however, we will have to move into a new dimension. Because earlier in the day, Alexander Zverev had qualified first for the final. Against Holger Rune (13th), winner of the tournament in 2022, the German was almost never worried. Sovereign on his serve, including four shutouts, the 27-year-old thwarted the Dane thanks to flawless defense. Even if he had difficulty concluding his match at the end of the match, Alexander Zverev nevertheless managed to win the game in two sets (6-3, 7-6 [7-4]).
Unlike last spring, when he reached the final of Roland-Garros, the world number 3 will be favorite to win his first coronation at Bercy against Ugo Humbert. He will aim for a second Masters 1000 this season, after his victory on the clay court of Rome, and will double, whatever happens, Carlos Alcaraz in the ATP rankings by taking his place as world number 2 on Monday.
