TURIN, Italy, (Reuters) – Alexander Zverev surged into the semi-finals of the ATP Finals after eliminating French Open and Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz with a 7-6(5) 6-4 defeat, while Casper Ruud also advanced with a 6-4 5-7 6-2 win over Andrey Rublev yesterday.
German Zverev came into the contest as the group leader with two victories from two matches — against Rublev and Ruud – but needed to win at least one set against Alcaraz to book his place in the semis.
In a tight opening set momentum swung back and forth before German second seed Zverev came out on top in the tiebreak. He then built a 3-1 lead in the second set before surviving a late Alcaraz fightback.
The result handed Zverev a 6-5 lead in his meetings with Alcaraz. It was the world number two’s 69th win of the season, the most victories in one season since three-times major winner Andy Murray (78) in 2016.
“He (Alcaraz) beat me too many times this year in important matches, so I’m happy that I got this one,” Zverev said.
“Obviously I feel like we have a pretty good rivalry with a great friendship as well, so it’s always nice to play against him… Just sharing the court with him. He’s a great guy and I’m looking forward to the next matches with him as well.
