CINCINNATI: Alexander Zverev came from two breaks down in the third set to beat Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (7/4) on Saturday and reach the final of the WTA and ATP Cincinnati Masters.
The German, who briefly left the court to vomit in the final set as he stepped up his fightback in front of a full crowd, will take a 4-0 record into Sunday's final with Andrey Rublev.
The Russian fourth seed surprised world number two compatriot Daniil Medvedev 2-6, 6-3, 6-3.
World number seven Rublev had never won so much as a set in four previous losses to Medvedev, top seed in the prestigious hardcourt tournament that serves as a tuneup for the US Open.
Zverev also turned a corner this week, having never won a match in six previous Cincinnati editions.
The German said he'd begun to feel his stomach trouble coming on in the second set, and he was seen briefly by a doctor who gave him some tablets in the third.
Immediately, things began to jell for the Tokyo Olympic gold medalist.
"After I got the first break (of the third set) back I thought I had chances. He was not serving bombs and I was always in the rallies. I started to play more aggressively."
Zverev got worked up at the end of the first set when Tsitsipas - as now seems to be his habit - left the court with his full bag of gear, presumably to change clothes.
His absence lasted an infuriating eight minutes as Zverev complained to the chair umpire, indicating he thought Tsitsipas could use the break to receive coaching via text.
Tsitsipas tried to take another break after winning the second set but was informed he had used up his one break.
Despite the tension, the two traded a friendly embrace at the net when the match ended.
"It's a great rivalry," Zverev said. "There's a lot of fire there, there's a lot of emotions there. But I think both of us, especially now before the US Open, we didn't want to give each other anything."
Zverev moved into his ninth Masters 1000 final with 42 winners including 15 aces after nearly two and three-quarter hours.
He had lost six previous matches out of eight played against the Greek.
Zverev was already thinking ahead to Rublev.
"In a final at this level there are no easy opponents, he played incredible today in beating Daniil. He's also one of my best friends."
In the women's draw, world number one Ashleigh Barty reached her sixth final of the season with a 6-2, 7-5 victory over Angelique Kerber.
The top-seeded Aussie, who has led the rankings for the past 82 weeks, needed an hour and a quarter to move into Sunday's title match, surpassing her semi-final showing from 2019.
Comments
Comments are closed.