Tennis News

Zverev Sets Alcaraz SF In Vienna

Alexander Zverev continued his quest for his fifth tour-level title of the season on Friday at the Erste Bank Open, downing Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 to capture his 50th tour-level victory of the season and reach the semi-finals in Vienna.

The second seed, who earned his 300th tour-level win on Thursday when he defeated Australian Alex de Minaur, was strong on serve, winning 80 per cent (40/50) of points behind his first delivery. The German recovered from a dip in the second set as he raised his level in the decider to advance after two hours and six minutes.

“I did make it difficult for myself once again, that needs to stop happening,” Zverev said. “One easy mistake and the second set went away. But I am proud of myself because at the beginning of the second set it could have gone his way easily.”

Zverev now leads Auger-Aliassime 4-1 in their ATP Head2Head series, gaining revenge from his defeat to the sixth seed in the fourth round at Wimbledon in July.

The World No. 4 will face #NextGenATP Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz in the last four after the 18-year-old upset Italian Matteo Berrettini 6-1, 6-7(2), 7-6(5) to reach his first ATP 500 semi-final.

“He [Alcaraz] has improved a lot,” Zverev added. “He has made big steps forward and is a great player, so I am looking forward to that match.”

Zverev is making his second main-draw appearance in Vienna, having enjoyed a run to the quarter-finals in 2017. Earlier this season, the 17-time tour-level titlist triumphed at ATP Masters 1000 events in Madrid and Cincinnati. The German also lifted the trophy in Acapulco and captured the gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics.

After winning 100 per cent (9/9) of his first-service points in the opening set, Zverev moved ahead and looked in control. That was until the eighth game of the second set, when the German missed a volley on top of the net at 30/0. Auger-Aliassime went on to break in that game, before levelling on serve.

However, Zverev regained his focus and composure in the decider and converted on his sixth break point in a mammoth 16-minute sixth game of the decider. Zverev then sealed victory when Auger-Aliassime hit a backhand long

With his defeat, Auger-Aliassime’s bid to qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals suffered a blow. The 21-year-old is 12th (2,420 points) in the FedEx ATP Race To Turin, 535 points behind ninth-placed Hubert Hurkacz. The Pole currently occupies the final qualification spot with eighth-placed Rafael Nadal out for the rest of the season due to a foot injury.

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Alcaraz Upsets Berrettini In Vienna Classic, Reaches SFs

#NextGenATP star Carlos Alcaraz is just 18 years old, but you would not have thought it on Friday at the Erste Bank Open, where he upset World No. 7 Matteo Berrettini 6-1, 6-7(2), 7-6(5) to reach the semi-finals.

The Spaniard hit 24 winners as he showcased his power from the baseline throughout. Alcaraz mixed his aggressive hitting with great touch to cause Berrettini problems, advancing after two hours and 40 minutes in a high-quality match.

It is the first time Alcaraz has reached the last four at an ATP 500 event, with his victory over Berrettini the second biggest win of his career by FedEx ATP Ranking. The 18-year-old shocked World No. 3 Stefanos Tsitsipas in the third round at the US Open in September.

Alcaraz, who is making his debut in Vienna, overcame British pair Daniel Evans and Andy Murray earlier this week. The Spaniard is aiming to win his second tour-level title, after triumphing in Umag in July.

The World No. 42 will next face second seed Alexander Zverev or Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime in his fourth tour-level semi-final of the season.

In a fast start, Alcaraz quickly clicked into gear as he found his best tennis to pin Berrettini behind the baseline with his flat and accurate groundstrokes, moving ahead after 29 minutes. However, Berrettini began to dig in during the second set and raised his level in the crucial moments, saving all four break points he faced as they moved to a decider.

Alcaraz quickly regained his grip on the match in the third set as he raced 4-1 ahead, but was pegged back to 4-4 after Berrettini produced a strong return
game. The pair then moved to a tie-break, in which Alcaraz raised his game and the roof to secure his victory on his third match point.

Berrettini was bidding to reach his first tour-level semi-final since Wimbledon, where he advanced to the championship match. The third seed reached the last four in
Vienna in 2019 and booked his place at the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin after his first-round victory against Australian Alexei Popyrin on Monday.

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Fritz Storms Into St. Petersburg SFs

Taylor Fritz produced an impressive performance on Friday at the St. Petersburg Open, overcoming John Millman 6-4, 6-2 to reach his second consecutive tour-level semi-final.

The American, who celebrated his 24th birthday by defeating Tommy Paul on Thursday, rallied from a break down in the first set and won 73 per cent (19/26) of his first-serve points to advance after 74 minutes.

“It feels great. I came out and played really well today,” Fritz said in his on-court interview. “I knew what I had to do and I did it and I played well and I am happy to be in the semi-finals. There was a really important point [at the start of the second set] and I won that point and I carried the momentum from there. It was a really important break.”

Fritz is yet to drop a set in St. Petersburg and arrived at the ATP 250 event in form, having defeated World No. 4 Alexander Zverev en route to his first ATP Masters 1000 semi-final in Indian Wells earlier this month.

The fifth seed now leads Millman 2-0 in their ATP Head2Head series and is into his sixth tour-level semi-final of the season, with the World No. 28 also advancing to this stage in Doha, Cagliari, Los Cabos and Atlanta.

Fritz will next face Jan-Lennard Struff after the German upset second-seeded Canadian Denis Shapovalov 6-4, 6-3 in 81 minutes.

Struff was strong on serve, winning 88 per cent (22/25) of points behind his first delivery to improve to 5-2 in his ATP Head2Head series against Shapovalov. The 31-year-old has fond memories in St. Petersburg, where he also advanced to the last four in 2017.

“Denis is an amazing player, so the victory means a lot to me, to reach the semi-finals here for a second time,” Struff said in his on-court interview. “He beat me pretty easily in Dubai. He played very good and I didn’t play very well, so I knew I had to put a lot of energy into the match today and I did. I was serving well and returning well, so that was the key.”

Earlier this season, the World No. 53 enjoyed a run to his first tour-level final on home soil in Munich.

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Murray/Soares Battle Into St. Petersburg Semi-finals

Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares, who are eighth in the FedEx ATP Doubles Team Rankings, currently hold the final qualifying spot for the Nitto ATP Finals. This week at the St. Petersburg Open, they are doing well to give themselves breathing room.

The top seeds earned a 7-6(0), 3-6, 10-6 win on Thursday against Australians Luke Saville and John-Patrick Smith to reach the St. Petersburg semi-finals.

The veteran duo will next play New Zealand’s Marcus Daniell and Brazilian Marcelo Demoliner, who were 6-0, 3-6, 10-7 winners against Americans Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul. Earlier in the day, Fritz defeated Paul in the singles draw.

Canadian Denis Shapovalov, the second seed in the singles field, and partner Rohan Bopanna of India, clawed past Russian stars Karen Khachanov and Andrey Rublev 6-4, 5-7, 10-7.

Gille/Koepfer Upset Top Seeds In Vienna
The three doubles matches played at the Erste Bank Open on Thursday went to a Match Tie-break, and in one, the top seeds were upset.

Lucky losers Sander Gille of Belgium and Dominik Koepfer of Germany stunned top seeds Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic 3-6, 7-6(2), 11-9. 

In other action, second seeds Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury, this year’s US Open champions, eliminated Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime and two-time Roland Garros titlist Andreas Mies of Germany 6-3, 6-7(7), 10-6. Also advancing were third seeds John Peers and Filip Polasek, who ousted Austrian wild cards Oliver Marach and Philipp Oswald 6-7(4), 6-3, 10-4.

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Tremendous Tiafoe Stuns Tsitsipas In Vienna

Never count out Frances Tiafoe.

The American showed why on Thursday evening when he staged an impressive rally from 0-3 down in the deciding set to stun top seed Stefanos Tsitsipas 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 for a place in the Erste Bank Open quarter-finals.

After a short lapse in the second set, Tsitsipas appeared to have regained his level as he sprinted through the first three games in the decider. But Tiafoe, who constantly engaged the Austrian crowd, battled back to triumph after one hour and 49 minutes.

“You’ve got fans going nuts early in the match. I want to play. I want to be out there, I want to give it my all. You’ve got little kids screaming ‘Big Foe’ and that’s what it’s about,” Tiafoe said. “It’s almost irrelevant who you’re playing. Obviously I want to beat Stefanos and these guys, it’s always good to have on the resumé. It’s been great.”

It was a thrilling match with entertaining points throughout. But in the crucial moments, Tiafoe was the more decisive player, and that made the difference.

^{Photo Credit: Thomas Kronsteiner/Getty Images}
Tsitsipas double faulted to give Tiafoe the deciding break in the third set. Despite facing the pressure of serving out the match, the American played bold tennis to close things out, hitting a massive second serve at 30/15 and eliciting a return error on the next point to seal his victory.

Tiafoe now leads the pair’s ATP Head2Head series 2-1, with all three of their meetings coming this year. He was victorious at Wimbledon, and Tsitsipas beat him at the Tokyo Olympics.

In his only previous appearance in Vienna three years ago, Tiafoe lost in the first round. But he made just 14 unforced errors to move into his second ATP 500 quarter-final of the year.

“I just love playing in a packed house. I feel at home. I feel like that’s what it’s about,” Tiafoe said. “The result is almost irrelevant sometimes. You have kids coming out, parents bring these kids out, pay their hard-earned money to come watch me play. I want people to have fun just like I’m having fun… I feel it’s my duty to ‘A’, bring it, give my all, but also to make sure everyone has fun. That kid at the top of the stadium, I want them going home remembering [they] watched Frances Tiafoe play and [they] had a great time.”

The 23-year-old will next play eighth seed Diego Schwartzman, who clawed past Frenchman Gael Monfils 7-6(5), 4-6, 6-2 after two hours and 32 minutes.

That was another exciting encounter, in which both men showed incredible speed and athleticism. In one hilarious moment, Monfils let slip his racquet as he hit a volley and, as a joke, hit the next volley with his hands, giving Schwartzman the point. Both men laughed about it at the net.

The Argentine did not face a break point in the deciding set and showed some of the form that helped him to the Antwerp final last week. Schwartzman has now won 10 of his past 13 matches.

“For me it was an important match. The only bad part [is] I cannot see Paris Saint-Germain tomorrow [with] Messi in France. I’m kidding, I’m kidding!” Schwartzman said in his post-match interview. “I calmed down a little bit in the third [set].”

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Zverev Earns 300th Win: 'This Is Definitely A Massive Milestone'

German Alexander Zverev earned his 300th tour-level win on Thursday at the Erste Bank Open, where he defeated Australian Alex de Minaur 6-2, 3-6, 6-2 to reach the quarter-finals.

“I started on the Tour when I was 16 years old and now being 24, I’m still quite young, so I’m quite happy to have this achievement at an early stage in my career,” Zverev told ATPTour.com. “Hopefully there are a lot more coming.”

Zverev claimed his first tour-level victory seven years ago in Hamburg against Robin Haase. Now the German is 300-138 and his 68.3 winning percentage ranks sixth among active players, trailing only Novak Djokovic (83.2%), Rafael Nadal (83.1%), Roger Federer (82%), Andy Murray (76.5%) and Juan Martin del Potro (71.7%).

“This is definitely a massive milestone for me,” Zverev said in his post-match interview.

A few victories stick out to Zverev, who is a five-time Nitto ATP Finals qualifier and the 2018 champion at the season finale.

“The most memorable one is the first one against Haase in Hamburg when I was 17. [I would also say my] first win against Roger in Halle, because it was in Germany as well… and I think the first tournament victory against Stan in St. Petersburg [in 2016],” Zverev added.

The Vienna second seed had to work hard to eliminate De Minaur. He powered through behind 17 aces and won 89 per cent of his first-serve points to reach the quarter-finals.

“I missed too many chances in the second set, I can’t do that. I was rushing maybe a little bit too much. I did too many unforced errors then and credit to Alex because he picked up his level,” Zverev said. “He saw his chance and he used it, so credit to him. But in the third set, I picked it up again and I’m happy [it went] my way.”

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Cilic Claws Past Khachanov In St. Petersburg

Marin Cilic is Croatian, but he is making himself at home in Russia.

The former World No. 3 made the final in Moscow last week, and on Thursday he battled into the quarter-finals in St. Petersburg. Cilic rallied past home favourite Karen Khachanov 6-4, 6-7(1), 6-4 to advance to the last eight.

“It was an amazing match, great level from both sides,” Cilic said in his on-court interview. “Karen played really, really well and on a few occasions [was] just a little bit unlucky. In the third set I was break point up at 1-1, then 40/0 on my game. One or two points here and there [were the difference], but I have to say it was definitely a great match.”

Khachanov pushed hard to continue his run at home, where he earned a 4-1 lead in the deciding set with his aggressive play. But Cilic stormed back to claim the final five games and with it the match after two hours and 30 minutes.

Cilic won the St. Petersburg title in his most recent appearance at the event in 2011. But with the likes of top seed Andrey Rublev still in the draw, the Croatian is not getting ahead of himself.

“Everybody is playing good. The tournament is great. It’s the end of the season, so everybody wants to finish on a great level,” Cilic said. “For me it was great to play this kind of a match today.”

It will not get any easier in the quarter-finals against third seed Roberto Bautista Agut. The Spanish veteran eliminated American Mackenzie McDonald 6-3, 6-2 in one hour and 19 minutes.

“I love playing here in St. Petersburg. I like this court. I like the conditions. I like the city, also,” Bautista said in his on-court interview. “I’m happy that I won the first match in two sets and [I will] be ready for tomorrow.”

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Sinner-Ruud Blockbuster Set In Vienna

Jannik Sinner and Casper Ruud on Thursday set a blockbuster quarter-final at the Erste Bank Open with massive implications on the FedEx ATP Race To Turin.

If Sinner defeats Ruud, he will pass Hubert Hurkacz to hold the final qualifying spot for the Nitto ATP Finals and pull within 90 points of Ruud for seventh place. If the Norwegian wins, he will further solidify his standing as he pursues a maiden trip to the season finale.

Sinner advanced to the last eight with a 6-4, 6-2 victory against wild card Dennis Novak. The Italian saved all six break points he won to triumph after one hour and 16 minutes.

The 2019 Intesa Sanpaolo Next Gen ATP Finals champion has won 10 consecutive indoor matches — including titles in Sofia and Antwerp — and not lost a set in any of them. He has won both his matches in Vienna by identical 6-4, 6-2 margins.

^{Photo Credit: Bildagentur Zolles}
His next opponent, Ruud, had to battle hard to move past Italian Lorenzo Sonego 7-5, 4-6, 6-4 in two hours and 42 minutes. The 22-year-old, once known for his clay-court play, has improved on hard courts, lifting his first trophy on the surface in San Diego.

In the Norwegian’s first appearance in Vienna last year, Ruud lost against Sinner. That was their only previous ATP Head2Head meeting.

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Emma Raducanu wins in Romania, Cameron Norrie loses in Austria

Britain’s Emma Raducanu produces a composed display to beat Romania’s Ana Bogdan in straight sets and reach the Transylvania Open quarter-finals.

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Happy Birthday, Taylor! Fritz Celebrates With Win In St. Petersburg

Taylor Fritz gave himself the perfect 24th birthday present on Thursday: a win.

The fifth seed defeated close friend Tommy Paul 7-6(3), 6-4 to reach the quarter-finals of the St. Petersburg Open.

“It makes it even tougher,” Fritz said in his on-court interview. “[Tommy is] not just another American, one of my closest friends. It’s never easy playing against a really close friend.”

Although Fritz and Paul have known each other since they were kids, this was their first ATP Head2Head clash. Fritz was better under pressure, saving three of the four break points he faced and converting his two opportunities to triumph after one hour and 34 minutes.

Fritz, who made his first ATP Masters 1000 semi-final at Indian Wells, has been playing the best tennis of his career. He will try to maintain his form against Australian John Millman in the last eight.

Millman upset last week’s Moscow champion Aslan Karatsev, the fourth seed, 6-3, 6-2.

“Congratulations to Aslan for an incredible year and last week lifting a title in his home city, I think that’s pretty special,” Millman said in his on-court interview. “I’ve really enjoyed my time in Russia. I feel like I’m playing really good tennis and it’s nice at the end of the year to be playing at a high level.”

Although Karatsev was unable to advance, another 2021 breakthrough star did. Dutch qualifier Botic van de Zandschulp, who reached the US Open quarter-finals, eliminated eighth seed Sebastian Korda 6-2, 7-5.

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