Zverev books ATP Finals semis berth with straight sets win over Alcaraz, Sinner cruises past Medvedev

Alexander Zverev secured a spot in the last four of the ATP Finals on Friday with 7-6 (7/5), 6-4 victory over Carlos Alcaraz which leaves the Spaniard’s destiny out of his hands.

World number two Zverev ensured he would advance after taking the first set 7-6 (7/5) after more than an hour of battle in northern Italy and then swept through the second for his third victory in as many matches.

Alcaraz, who won at Wimbledon and Roland Garros this season but has struggled for form in Turin, is now on the brink of being eliminated from the season-ending tournament.

Zverev’s qualification from the John Newcombe Group means that three of the four semi-final spots have been filled, with Jannik Sinner and Taylor Fritz through from the Ilie Nastase Group. Earlier, Jannik Sinner capped a perfect group stage with a 6-3, 6-4 win over Daniil Medvedev which eliminated his Russian rival.

World number one Sinner had already qualified for the semi-finals thanks to Alex De Minaur winning the opening set in his defeat to Taylor Fritz earlier in the day.

And he only needed a set to ensure top spot in the Ilie Nastase Group and deny Medvedev a place in the last four of the season-ending event in Turin.

Sinner was in no mood to disappoint his passionate home supporters and put in the latest in an increasingly long line of impressive performances to head into the semis with a perfect three wins from three.

“I have a reason to smile, it was a good match and a brilliant atmosphere as always,” said a delighted Sinner.

“It was a difficult match, Daniil and I know each other really well so I knew that I had to get it right tactically... Let’s see who I have in the semi-finals, I’m happy to get there.”

Medvedev would have progressed with a win in straight sets but the world number four has now won just one of his last nine matches with Sinner and was outclassed in northern Italy.

After finishing the season with no titles, he told reporters that he rated his season “zero out of 10” when looking at “where I put my goals and where I finish”.

“I want to be number one in the world, but I didn’t play well enough this year, by far,” Medvedev said.

“I’m No. 4 in the big tennis world. I’m super proud about that because, as I said, especially in the end of the year, I struggled throughout the whole year. Every practice, every match was a struggle for me.”

Sinner is hunting his first Finals title after an exceptional season in which he won seven tournaments, including his first Grand Slam victories at the Australian and US Opens.

He lost last year’s final to Novak Djokovic, who pulled out of the tournament injured this time around and he entered the 2024 event already assured of becoming the first Italian to top the ATP end-of-year rankings.

Meanwhile, India’s Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden of Australia ended their successful partnership with a dramatic win over Kevin Krawietz and Tim Puetz in their final group match on Friday. The Indian-Australian pair triumphed 7-5, 6-7(6), 10-7, closing out their 2024 season with a thrilling victory in Turin.

Although already eliminated from the semifinal contention after two earlier losses, Bopanna and Ebden came out with intensity.

They played solidly despite a tense second-set tie-break, where they squandered two match points. However, the pair showed resilience, eventually sealing the win in a Match Tie-break in a 1-hour, 42-minute clash.

The victory was highlighted by Bopanna and Ebden’s serving strength, as they hit a combined 14 aces, according to Infosys ATP Stats. This win also levelled their ATP head-to-head record with Krawietz and Puetz at 2-2, adding a positive note to the end of their partnership.

Agencies