Medvedev sets up final showdown with Zverev; Gauff in maiden final

Dominant Daniil Medvedev reached a staggering sixth final in a row but will need to beat Alexander Zverev for the first time to win the Shanghai Masters on Sunday.

The US Open finalist defeated fellow rising star Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece 7-6 (7/5), 7-5.

In the other semi-final on Saturday, Germany’s Zverev eased past Matteo Berrettini of Italy 6-3, 6-4 in a showdown between two more budding talents.

With Roger Federer and world number one Novak Djokovic ousted in the quarter-finals on Friday, the next generation of men’s Tennis stars has made its mark in China.

The 23-year-old Russian Medvedev embellished his fast-growing reputation with a fifth victory in as many matches against Tsitsipas, 21.

In contrast, he is yet to overcome the 22-year-old Zverev in four attempts.

“I did say before this year and during this year in the beginning that Sascha (Zverev) was the best in our ‘Next Gen’ group,” the world number four said.

“He won three Masters when none of us were even close to doing this.“Positions have changed a little bit so I think I can contest him right now.”

The seventh-ranked Tsitsipas, who dumped out defending champion Djokovic in three sets on Friday, said that Medvedev’s formidable serve had been the difference.

Sixth-ranked Zverev, long touted as the man most likely to join the “Big Three” of Federer, Djokovic and Rafael Nadal, has had a disappointing year, winning only one title. But the German defeated 20-time Grand Slam champion Federer on Friday and took that momentum into his last-four clash with the 23-year-old Berrettini.

Meanwhile, American teenage sensation Coco Gauff reached the first WTA final of her career on Saturday as the 15-year-old beat Andrea Petkovic 6-4, 6-4 in the last four in Linz.

Gauff, who burst onto the scene with a run to the Wimbledon last 16 earlier this year, is the youngest woman to make a WTA final since Nicole Vaidisova won the Tashkent title in 2004.

“This is definitely unreal, my first final on the WTA,” said Gauff, who only got into the main draw in Austria as a lucky loser.

The current world number 110 is set to climb to at least 80th in the rankings next week. She will face either 2017 French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko or Russian eighth seed Ekaterina Alexandrova in Sunday’s final.

This is Gauff’s first WTA tournament since she left the court in tears after a heavy defeat by two-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka in the US Open third round.

Gauff showed plenty of variety in her game as she beat the 75th-ranked Petkovic, relying frequently on well-executed drop shots.

Agence France-Presse