Alexander Zverev reached the semifinals of the ATP Finals with an emphatic 7-6, 6-4 win over Carlos Alcaraz on Friday, thus ousting the Spaniard from the season-ending competition.
Coming into the match at the top of the John Newcombe Group following victories against Andrey Rublev and Casper Ruud, the 27-year-old German needed just one set to confirm his spot in the last four. Third seed Alcaraz, who was seeking a victory to keep himself alive in the competition, pushed hard but came up a little short in an extremely close match.
Second seed Zverev made it a clean sweep in the group stages and will go into the last four against US Open finalist Taylor Fritz. Speaking after his match against Alcaraz, Zverev said: “He’s beaten me too many times in key moments this year, so I’m happy to get this one. We have a good rivalry and friendship, and it’s always great to share the court with him.”.
Zverev was dominant on serve, collecting 73 per cent of his service points while striking 29 winners in the one-hour-and-57-minute encounter. The victory was Zverev’s 69th of the year. This is the most victories by any player since Andy Murray’s 78 wins in 2016.
The semifinal berth is Zverev’s fourth at the ATP Finals- a feat bettered only by Novak Djokovic in recent years.
