Alcaraz defeats Zverev to reach US Open semi-finals

NEW YORK -- Top seed Carlos Alcaraz defeated Alexander Zverev in straight sets on Wednesday to cruise into the US Open semi-finals and keep his title defense on track.

The Spaniard will play third seed Daniil Medvedev on Friday for a place in the final after sweeping Zverev aside, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4, in another clinical performance.

Alcaraz was not at his spectacular best but dominated at critical moments with Zverev perhaps feeling the effects of a 4hr 41min outing in the last 16 in the tournament's longest match so far.

The world number one converted all four of his break points, while Zverev failed to take any of his five chances.

"I'm feeling really comfortable playing on this court, playing in New York," said Alcaraz, who has dropped just one set en route to the last four.

"I'm feeling strong. I think I'm ready for a great battle against Medvedev."

The 20-year-old Alcaraz is now 24-1 in his last four Grand Slams going back to the start of last year's US Open. His only loss in that time came to Novak Djokovic in the French Open semi-finals.

Zverev sensed an opportunity when he twice brought up break point in the seventh game, but Alcaraz held firm and then rubbed salt in the wound by smashing a volley at the net to dart 5-3 ahead.

A comfortable service game earned Alcaraz the set and he didn't wait long till to hammer home his advantage, whipping a crunching backhand to break for a 2-1 lead in the second set.

The top seed punished a Zverev double fault by breaking once more for 5-2, cemented with a one-two combination of blistering forehands.

Alcaraz snuffed out a break point in the second game of the third set, thwarting Zverev twice more two games later -- continuing the theme of raising his game throughout when it mattered most.

He needed no second invitation when another opening presented itself on Zverev's serve at 4-all, slashing a wicked forehand to close in on victory before serving it out for a spot in the semi-finals.

Agence France-Presse

Tennis: Teenager Alcaraz has eyes on Roland Garros after Madrid triumph

MADRID, Spain -- Teenager Carlos Alcaraz continued his blazing rise by demolishing Alexander Zverev in the Madrid final on Sunday and then said "I really want to prove my level in a Grand Slam".

Two weeks before the start of the French Open, the young Spaniard brushed aside his third-ranked foe 6-3, 6-1 in 62 minutes to continue a run that signals tennis has a new power.

"I really want to go to Paris to win a Grand Slam, to show my level in a Grand Slam," said Alcaraz at a press conference after winning the second Masters 1000 of his career.

"People are going to take me as a favorite, but I take that as motivation," added Alcaraz.

He said he will miss the Rome claycourt tournament this week after injuring an ankle in beating Rafael Nadal in the quarterfinals on Friday.

"This morning, because of the fall against Rafa, I woke up with a more swollen ankle and I also had a blister that had become infected," he said. 

"It was a little difficult to walk, but... we were able to do a few things to be at 100 percent for the match." 

Before the Madrid tournament last year, Alcaraz was ranked 120th in the world. On Monday he will reach number six.

"I have five more to go to be the best in the world," he said.

He became the youngest US Open quarter-finalist of the Open era last September, then won his first Masters 1000 title in Miami in early April. 

Victory on Sunday brought a second Masters 1000 title. The only younger player to reach that milestone was Nadal, who won in Monte Carlo and Rome when he was 18. 

Alcaraz turned 19 on Thursday and over the next two days battled past Nadal in two hours and 28 minutes and Novak Djokovic in 3hr 36min.

"I am 19 years old, which I think is the key to be able to play long and tough matches in a row. I am feeling great physically," he said

"It feels great to be able to beat these players. To beat two of the best players in history and then Zverev, the world No. 3. He is a great player. I would say this is the best week of my life," he said.

- 'Good shots' -

Zverev had no doubt where the teenager's trajectory is heading.

"It's great to see for tennis that we have such a new superstar who is going to win so many Grand Slams and is going to be world no. 1," said the German. 

The atmosphere on Sunday did not reach the fervor of the day before, as Alcaraz grabbed control early and cruised to his quickest victory of the week.

Even so, "it was a spectacular atmosphere," he told the crowd at the end.

"This tournament is special for me because it's the first tournament I watched when I was seven or eight," said Alcaraz. 

"Watching Rafa lift this trophy so often, gave me a lot of power to work hard for this moment." 

Zverev complained that he was "dead" because he had played the latest matches the previous two nights, yet he was impressed with Alcaraz.

"Carlitos, right now you are the best player in the world. Even though you are still five years old you are still beating us all," he told Alcaraz on court after the match. 

Alcaraz said he had some way to go.

"I still have to improve in everything," he said. "I have very good shots, but they can be improved and can be much better."

Agence France-Presse

Tennis: Medvedev wears down Zverev in Paris to claim third Masters title

PARIS -- Russian Daniil Medvedev outclassed German Alexander Zverev 5-7 6-4 6-1 in the Paris final on Sunday to claim his third Masters title.

The third seed, who also defeated Zverev in the Shanghai final last year, returned strongly throughout the match to take his first title of the year.

Medvedev, 24, had more energy in the deciding set and made the most of his opportunities against an inconsistent Zverev, who had won five of their six previous meetings.

A double fault earned the Russian his eighth ATP title after two hours and seven minutes.

Medvedev said he pulled off the win by making his "opponent crazy".

Both players had a high first serve percentage early on, holding comfortably. Zverev went 40-0 up on the Russian's serve at 6-5 to earn the first break points of the match.

Medvedev saved the first two by dictating the rallies, but he whacked a forehand long on the third and conceded his second set of the tournament.

Zverev faced his first break points in a fiercely contested third game in the second set, which he won, but he dropped serve in the ninth game when he sent a crosscourt backhand long.

Medvedev won his service game to love to level the match and send it into a decider.

He broke to love, held serve after saving four break points and broke again thanks to a booming service return as he moved 4-0 up.

With his confidence shattered, Zverev never looked capable of mounting a comeback as Medvedev added to his 2019 Shanghai and Cincinnati Masters titles.

Both players will take part in the season-ending ATP Tour Finals at the O2 in London from Nov. 15-22.

Medvedev, the fourth Russian player to win at Bercy after three-time champion Marat Safin, Nikolay Davydenko and Karen Khachanov, said he would go into the tournament full of confidence.

"I'm coming in better shape than last year. Last year I was real exhausted, I had lost in the first round in Paris. That's when you lose your confidence," he said.

"When you lose the first round, you always lose your confidence." 

(Reporting by Julien Pretot; Editing by Ed Osmond and Pritha Sarkar)

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2019 Australian Open: Dominic Thiem outlasts Alexander Zverev to make final

Tireless Dominic Thiem came from a set down to outlast German Alexander Zverev and make his first Australian Open final Friday, booking a showdown with seven-time champion Novak Djokovic.

The 26-year-old fifth seed, the first player from Austria ever to reach the Melbourne decider, battled past seventh-ranked Zverev 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (3), 7-6 (4) on a sweltering evening.

Defending champion Djokovic awaits him after the second seed ended Roger Federer's dreams in straight sets Thursday to make his eighth Melbourne Park final.

Thiem has his work cut out against the Serb who is on a 12-match unbeaten streak this season and has won all seven of the Australian Open deciders he has contested.

And if Djokovic needs extra motivation, winning on Sunday will see him reclaim the world number one ranking after Rafael Nadal crashed to Thiem in the last eight.

"It was an unreal match, two tie-breakers, so tough and so close. It was almost impossible to break him," said Thiem.

"Being in the Australian Open final is unreal. What a start to the season for me."

Thiem had dealt with semi-final pressure before, although always on the slower red clay at Roland Garros, where he reached the past two finals only to be beaten by Nadal.

That experience paid dividends as he coolly closed out the match after 3hrs 42 mins to give himself another chance to break the stranglehold of the Big Three and win his first Grand Slam.

"I was playing four hours 10 against Rafa (in the quarter-finals), who is the most intense guy on tour, almost always so intense and long," Thiem said.

"So it was not easy to recover. But once all the adrenalin came, already when I walked into the full stadium was fine, actually, but still I had some troubles in the first set."

- Light failure -

A jittery Thiem was broken in the opening game, saving two break points before sending a backhand wide to immediately be on the back foot.

Both players were nervous and the German failed to consolidate, broken straight back.

Their momentum was interrupted when rain began falling and the roof needed closing, but it was only a brief intermission and Zverev resumed to hold for 2-2.

Thiem was still struggling with his first serve and a double fault handed the German a chance to go 4-3 in front and he grabbed it.

Zverev took command, putting 90 percent of his booming first serves in, and broke again to seal the set as the Austrian error-count mounted.

But the 22-year-old lost focus and two double faults in game three of the second set handed Thiem a 2-1 lead.

Zverev managed to break back but he was too erratic as Thiem broke again and clung on, firing an ace to take set two.

Bizarrely, play was halted for nine minutes one game into the third set when a light went out above the baseline and it bothered Zverev.

When they resumed, Thiem held serve and then broke with an epic backhand winner as Zverev again lost concentration and the momentum appeared to shift.

Thiem is one of the best returners in the game and was getting almost every ball back. He looked to be on his way, but Zverev refused to surrender and broke again to even it up.

It went to a tiebreak where Thiem turned on the style to take a stranglehold on the match.

There was little between them in the crucial fourth set as they traded blows. It went to serve and another tie-breaker when Thiem's experience helped him over the line.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Tennis: Gauff eclipses Venus to steal day one limelight

LONDON - American 15-year-old Cori Gauff stole the show on the opening day of Wimbledon with a debut victory over five-time champion and her inspiration Venus Williams.

Gauff, the youngest woman ever to survive the qualifying tournament, played like a seasoned performer as she clinically beat the 39-year-old great 6-4 6-4 to earn a standing ovation from an enchanted Court One crowd.

"I wouldn't say I didn't expect to win the match. I knew that I was going to go out there and play the way I play," Gauff, who claimed victory on her fourth match point, told reporters.

"I wasn't surprised that I won. I mean, I was just overwhelmed at the end."

Her victory put everything else in the shade on an opening day full of shocks in both draws.

World number two and second seed Naomi Osaka lost 7-6(4) 6-2 to dangerous Kazakh Yulia Putintseva who had also got the better of her in their recent match in Birmingham -- a defeat that effectively cost Osaka the number one ranking.

U.S. Open and Australian Open champion Osaka appeared close to tears when she spoke to the media later.

"Can I leave? I feel like I'm about to cry," the Japanese 21-year-old said.

French Open runner-up Marketa Vondrousova, the 16th seed, also bowed out but former world number ones Karolina Pliskova, Caroline Wozniacki, Simona Halep and Victoria Azarenka all made it safely through to the second round.

DJOKOVIC UNTROUBLED

Men's defending champion Novak Djokovic was untroubled as he began his quest for a fifth Wimbledon crown that would take him level on the all-time list with Swedish great Bjorn Borg.

The Serb, with former champion Goran Ivanisevic in his box, beat Germany's Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-3 7-5 6-3.

It was a bad day for two of the young guns expected to lead the new generation into a brave new era, however.

Sixth seed Alexander Zverev lost 4-6 6-3 6-2 7-5 to Czech Jiri Vesely while Greek 20-year-old Stefanos Tsitsipas went down in five sets to Italian journeyman Thomas Fabbiano.

Tsitsipas, in particular, was highly-fancied to have a long run at the All England Club having reached the Australian Open semi-final this year but lost 6-4 3-6 6-4 6-7(8) 6-3.

"He was just better than me today. I think the way I played, it should have been in three, not five. I don't know how I got to five. I guess with my fighting spirit, somehow I managed to win those two sets," he said.

Croatia's 40-year-old Ivo Karlovic, one of 47 men aged 30 or over in the men's singles, became the oldest man to play a first round match in the Wimbledon singles since Ken Rosewall in 1975.

The giant Croat served 20 aces as he beat Andrea Arnaboldi in straight sets and will meet Fabbiano next.

Last year's runner-up Kevin Anderson cruised through in straight sets against Pierre-Hugues Herbert.

Eight-time champion Roger Federer and women's defending champion Angelique Kerber, as well as 23-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams, start their campaigns on Tuesday. 

(Reporting by Martyn Herman; Editing by Ken Ferris)


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Tennis: Zverev outlasts Jarry in thrilling final to clinch Geneva Open title

Germany's Alexander Zverev did his French Open preparations a world of good by beating Chile's Nicolas Jarry 6-3 3-6 7-6(8) in a gruelling, rain-hit final at the Geneva Open on Sunday.

Top seed Zverev, looking for his first title win on clay since clinching the Italian Open last year, had endured a disappointing season so far and had not won a title since the ATP Finals in London in November.

The 22-year-old did not have it easy, taking two hours and 35 minutes to eventually get the better of his unseeded opponent in a match where both players had numerous match points. Two rain delays added to the drama.

Zverev was not as his best with eight double faults punctuating his victory, five of which came in the final set, and he converted only one of 12 break points over the course of the match.

Jarry, who beat Zverev in Barcelona on the same surface in a three-setter last month, fired six aces to Zverev's three but there was nothing to separate the two players until the third-set tie-break.

With Zverev leading 6-5 in the final set, Jarry battled hard to ensure it went to a tie-breaker. The German then won two points off Jarry's serve to take a 4-0 lead before Jarry saved three match points.

Zverev double-faulted at 6-6 to nearly hand his Chilean opponent the title but he kept his nerve to eventually win an exciting tie-breaker 10-8.

Zverev, the fifth seed at Roland Garros, takes on Australia's John Millman in the first round of the French Open on Monday while Jarry starts the tournament against eighth seed and fellow South American Juan Martin del Potro of Argentina. 

(Reporting by Rohith Nair in Bengaluru; editing by Clare Fallon)

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Zverev, Kerber put Germany on track for Hopman final

PERTH, Australia -- Alexander Zverev and Angelique Kerber steered Germany closer to a second successive Hopman Cup final after winning their singles matches against lower-ranked French opponents in Perth Wednesday.

The German top 10 duo, beaten in last year's final of the mixed teams tournament by Swiss duo Roger Federer and Belinda Bencic, made it two wins from as many group outings, beating France 2-1.

Kerber had to come from a set down to beat feisty Alize Cornet, while Zverev squandered a second-set match point before defeating Lucas Pouille in three sets.

In the mixed doubles, both sides took a very relaxed attitude to the dead rubber match and the French gained some consolation with a straight sets 4-3, 4-3 win.

Ranked second in the world, Kerber served for the first set in her singles match against the 45th-ranked Cornet, but then dropped three successive games as the Frenchwoman claimed the set.

However, Kerber settled and claimed the next two sets to win 5-7, 6-2, 6-4 in just over two hours and maintain her perfect singles record in Perth, with six wins from as many outings.

Kerber said Cornet was always a tricky opponent.

"She is a fighter," Kerber said.

"I had my chances in the first set, but she was playing good then and I missed a few balls.

"I was trying to find my rhythm in the second set, trying to still keep going and then the third set I think it was just two or three points that decided it."

Ranked fourth in the world, Zverev started well against the 32nd-ranked Pouille and took the first set comfortably on the back of a service break in the eighth game.

However, the match tightened up in the second set, with both players holding set points.

Zverev had a match point during the second set tie-break, while it wasn't until his sixth set point that Pouille levelled the match.

The pair traded service breaks early in the third set, but Zverev gained a second break for a 4-2 lead when the Frenchman double faulted and that sealed Pouille's fate.

"Lucas fought well and played very well in the important moments sometimes," Zverev said, after winning 6-3, 6-7, 6-2.

"He is a very tough opponent.

"I just hope to keep going with Angie and seeing how far we can go."

Unbeaten in their two group outings, the Germans will be guaranteed a spot in Saturday's decider if they beat Australia on Friday.

France are out of contention after losing both their ties.

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Zverev stuns Djokovic to claim ATP Finals title

LONDON - Twenty four hours after being booed for having the audacity to take down a tennis great, Alexander Zverev returned to topple another one as he stunned Novak Djokovic to win the ATP Finals title on Sunday.

Zverev, billed as the player most likely to lead the sport into a new golden era once the holy trinity of Roger Federer, Djokovic and Rafael Nadal have hung up their rackets, took full advantage of an off-key Serb to win 6-4 6-3.

Hamburg-born Zverev had been shamefully booed and heckled on Saturday by a Federer-worshipping crowd having beaten the six-time champion after a controversial second-set tiebreak.

Against world number one Djokovic, however, the 18,000 fans wedged into the cavernous O2 arena were roaring their support as he produced a level of tennis his opponent could not match.

He struck 20 winners to Djokovic's seven -- the last of which was a backhand to end a one hour and 19 minute duel.

"I really can't describe it. It is the biggest title I have ever won," Zverev said on court after becoming the first German to win the ATP's most prestigious title -- often referred to as 'the fifth slam' -- since Boris Becker in Frankfurt in 1995.

In becoming the youngest ATP Finals champion since Djokovic, also 21, in 2008, Zverev sent out a clear message that he is ready to spend a considerable amount of time at tennis' top table and start accumulating the game's biggest prizes.

Djokovic, whose error-strewn display was a shock after a dominant week in south east London which included an easy round-robin win over Zverev, sportingly walked around the net to congratulate his conqueror after match point -- the German still laying on his back in a state of disbelief.

Later, Djokovic told reporters: "There's a lot of similarities in terms of trajectory of professional tennis, in our careers. Hopefully he can surpass me.

"There's a lot of time ahead of him. (I) Wish him to stay healthy and obviously win a lot of titles."

Zverev, younger brother of Tour pro Mischa and now coached by eight-times major champion Ivan Lendl, is yet to go past the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam.

NATURAL FLAIR

That is still the test next year but on Sunday he displayed an added sense of maturity, to go with the natural flair and easy power that have marked him out as a future number one.

His forehand, often regarded as a weakness, was armour-plated and he showed a refreshing willingness to attack the net -- a skill he perhaps has learned from his brother.

Most impressive was that he often prevailed in the long, attritional baseline rallies in which Djokovic has used as the foundation for 14 Grand Slam titles.

The opening eight games resembled a boxing match with both players probing for weaknesses -- although it was evident that Zverev's packed the more powerful punches.

Djokovic, winner of 35 of his last 37 matches during a dominant second half of the year which propelled him back to world number one, had not dropped serve all week and had faced only two break points in his four previous matches.

But at 4-4 he wavered as he yanked an edgy forehand halfway up the net to give Zverev the chance to serve for the set.

Zverev took his opportunity in emphatic fashion -- blasting down three consecutive aces then winning the set when another Djokovic forehand flew long.

An increasingly-ragged Djokovic then dropped his opening two service games of the second set, either side of breaking Zverev for the first time as the German played a rare loose game.

The crowd still expected a Djokovic fight back but it never materialised and at 3-5 the 31-year-old crumbled, serving a double-fault to help Zverev earn two match points.

He saved the first but was left standing as Zverev conjured a stunning backhand to cap a brilliant display.

(Reporting by Martyn Herman Editing by Christian Radnedge)

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Federer, Zverev lead the way as Team Europe retain Laver Cup

Roger Federer and Alexander Zverev won clutch singles matches as Team Europe beat Team World 13-8 to retain the Laver Cup on the third and final day of action in the international tournament in Chicago on Sunday.

Federer's hardfought 6-7(5) 7-6(8) 10-7 victory over American John Isner put the Europeans just three points from their victory target and Zverev got them there with a 6-7(3) 7-5 10-7 win over Kevin Anderson.

German Zverev needed to be at his sharpest to get past the South African stalwart but won the final five points of the third set tie-break to ensure Europe would keep the trophy they won at the inaugural event in Prague last year.

"It was such a close match all around, not only this one but all weekend, a few points here and there and it could have been different," said Zverev. "I'm just happy to get the win and we defended the title, that's the most important thing."

It was fitting that 21-year-old Zverev punctuated the triumph for Europe by conquering Anderson, one of the most formidable players of the tournament.

Anderson had teamed up with American Jack Sock to knock off Federer and Novak Djokovic in doubles on day one, then defeated Djokovic in a singles contest on Saturday.

On Sunday, John McEnroe's Team World had taken their first lead of the tournament at 8-7 after the opening doubles when Sock and Isner slipped past Federer and Zverev 4-6 7-6(2) 11-9.

Federer needed to save three match points to disarm Isner's big serve and take the day's opening singles contest, which like all of Sunday's matches was worth three points.

The World Team needed to win one of the first two singles matches to take the tournament down to the final singles clash between Djokovic and Australian Nick Kyrgios but Zverev's victory ensured it was not required.

Grigor Dimitrov, David Goffin and Kyle Edmund were the other members of the triumphant team led by Swedish great Bjorn Borg.

"It’s been an unbelievable week," said Borg. "I’m very proud of my team, we knew it’s going to be very difficult to beat Team World with John as the captain. He has a great team, they’re very professional."

(Writing by Jahmal Corner in Los Angeles, editing by Nick Mulvenney)

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Federer, Zverev put Europe on top at Laver Cup

CHICAGO -- Roger Federer and Alexander Zverev powered Europe into a commanding 7-1 lead over the World team at the Laver Cup here Saturday, winning their respective singles matches in contrasting fashion.

World number two Federer was barely ruffled as he cruised to a 6-3, 6-2 win over Nick Kyrgios at Chicago's United Center.

Earlier, Zverev saved a match point to defeat John Isner in day two's opening singles rubber.

Zverev, 21, dug deep to hold off the big-serving Isner to win 3-6, 7-6 (8/6), 10-7.

Under the format being used for the tournament, a 10-point tiebreak is used instead of a decisive third set.

READ: Isner a new pop while playing at the Laver Cup
After dominating Friday's opening day, winning three out of the four matches, Europe's progress looked to be checked after Isner grabbed the first set against Zverev.

But rising German star Zverev showed great determination in saving a match point at 6-5 down in the second-set tie-break to level the contest.

Zverev then raced into the lead in the 10-point match tie-break before closing out for the win.

Under the scoring system for the Laver Cup, victories on day two are worth two points each, with victories on day three rising to three points.

Europe needs only 13 points to take the title, which is being held for the second time.

In later matches on Saturday, Novak Djokovic faces Kevin Anderson, while Europe doubles pairing Grigor Dimitrov and David Goffin complete the schedule against the World team's Jack Sock and Kyrgios.

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Tennis: Tsitsipas stuns Zverev to reach Toronto semi-finals

Stefanos Tsitsipas saved two match points to beat defending champion Alexander Zverev 3-6, 7-6 (13/11), 6-4 and reach the semi-finals of the Toronto Masters on Friday.

The Greek teenager, who turns 20 on Sunday's final day, defeated his third straight top 10 opponent at the tournament after knocking out Dominic Thiem in the second round and 13-time major winner Novak Djokovic in the third.

Tsitsipas is the youngest player to post three top 10 wins at a single tournament since a 19-year-old Rafael Nadal at Monte Carlo in 2006.

He will next face Wimbledon runner-up Kevin Anderson, who beat Grigor Dimitrov 6-2, 6-2. 

"I'm confused now, is this real?," 27th-ranked Tsitsipas said after completing his prestige hat-trick of upsets.

The Greek rallied from a set and 5-2 down to turn the tables on Zverev, who had been bidding for a fourth Masters 1000 title. 

"He started putting some balls into the court. I lost a little bit of concentration, a little bit of rhythm," Zverev said. "Even if I would have won, it wasn't a good match."

Tsitsipas broke in the ninth game of the second on the way into a tiebreaker, where he calmly converted on his fifth set point after saving two match points for the second-seeded Zverev.

Tsitsipas then salvaged four break points for 2-1 in the third, he traded breaks with the German and saved another trio of break points for a 5-4 lead.

He completed the victory after nearly two and a half hours on Zverev's sixth double-fault.

"This shows that with dedication and work, dreams do come true," Tsitsipas said. "I can see that it's real -- it's happening.

"I don't know what happened (in the second set) I just broke him (for 4-5), All along I could feel the crowd support, I knew I was still in the match."

Anderson's sweep past reigning ATP World Tour Finals champion Dimitrov was a rematch of their 2014 quarter-final duel in Canada when Dimitrov claimed one of his six wins against the South African.

"It definitely was a great match today. I felt I played really well right from the beginning," Anderson said.

"Right from the first point till the last, I felt I was in a really good frame of mind, playing the kind of tennis that I knew I wanted to be playing and needed to be playing.

"Getting off the court pretty comfortably definitely is a really good feeling."

Anderson hadn't defeated the Bulgarian for six years but he was in command throughout on Friday to reach his second career Masters 1000 semi-final having also made the last-four on clay in Madrid in May.

The big South African rolled into the semis in just 66 minutes, breaking four times while managing only a modest 11 aces.

"There's not much to say, he came out, played his game and everything was going his way," Dimitrov said. "He did everything well -- simple as that.

"There was not much for me to do. I tried as hard as I can, but I couldn't get into a rally."

Dimitrov will now head for the Cincinnati Masters where he is the defending champion. Tsitsipas won his only previous match over Anderson, beating him on clay last May in Estoril. 

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Defending champion Zverev beat Tsitsipas to return to final

Champion Alexander Zverev cruised into the final of the Citi Open with a 6-2 6-4 victory over Greece's Stefanos Tsitsipas in Washington on Saturday.

World number three Zverev needed 87 minutes to win his 40th match of the year.

The German dropped only one point on his first serve and took advantage of the 10th seeded Greek's poor serving in the first set.

The second set was tighter. Tsitsipas, serving better, landed 65 percent of first serves and used that to moved closer to the baseline and prohibit Zverev from attacking from the first ball.

But in a 24-point game at 4-4, Zverev dived to earn one of six game points and on his fourth break point of the game, made a return off a deep second serve. Tsitsipas hit a forehand into the net to concede the deciding break.

“I saw he was getting a little bit tired, Zverev told Tennis Channel. "I think the heat helped me in this case a little bit. I saw him hitting himself (he smashed his palm against forehead five times at a changeover).”

Zverev will seek his third title of 2018 when he plays either Russia's Andrey Rublev or Australia's Alex de Minaur in Sunday's final.

Rublev and de Minaur were scheduled to play their semi-final later on Saturday.

The 16th seeded Rublev started his day by defeating American Denis Kudla 6-1 6-4 in a delayed quarter-final match.

Now on a nine-match Citi Open winning streak, Zverev chided officials for scheduling his semi-final in the afternoon after playing night matches all week.

“You play the whole week during the night and then all of a sudden on semi-finals day let’s play at 2 o’clock," the German said. "I’m not so sure of that idea.

"The semi-finals you want to play with the same conditions, with the same rhythm you had and all of a sudden you’ve got to go out there with the hottest weather all week.

"We’ve been going to sleep at 3:30-4 am and now all of a sudden we have to wake up at 10 o’clock and get ready to play.”

He said the only day match he played last year was the final.

(Reporting by Gene Cherry in Raleigh, North Carolina, additional reporting by Andrew Both, editing by Pritha Sarkar)

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Zverev crushes Thiem to win Madrid title

MADRID - Germany's Alexander Zverev looked every bit a serious French Open title contender as he crushed claycourt specialist Dominic Thiem 6-4 6-4 in the Madrid Open final on Sunday.

Oddly the 21-year-old world number three is yet to progress past the last 16 of a grand slam but he now has three Masters 1000 titles to his name and against Thiem played with a swagger that suggests that his record in the majors will improve soon.

The second seed broke a nervy-looking Thiem in the opening game thanks to a double-fault and was never really challenged as he produced a clinical serving display in which he did not even offer up a break point.

Zverev, who did not face a break point all tournament, broke again right at the start of the second but squandered the chance of a double-break two games later as Thiem, conqueror of Rafael Nadal in the last eight, hung on.

There was no chance of a let-up from Zverev though and he remained focussed throughout, winning on his first match point when his Austrian opponent returned long.

Zverev becomes only the fifth active player to win at least three Masters 1000 titles -- joining the 'big four' of Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray.

He will roll on to try to defend his Rome title next week having won nine matches in a row on clay, dropping only one set in the process during title runs in Munich and Madrid.

"Hopefully I can continue this kind of streak in Rome," Zverev told reporters.

"Winning two titles in two weeks is great. Winning a Masters, another Masters, is unbelievable. But before the French Open, there's still Rome where I'm the defending champion...

"Obviously I didn't get broken one time (in Madrid)," he added. "But I don't think I faced breakpoints in the whole tournament. For me, this is an amazing stat to know in the back of my mind."

(Reporting by Martyn Herman Editing by Toby Davis)

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Zverev beats Cilic in impressive ATP Finals debut

LONDON - A few hours after old master Roger Federer reminded everyone of his enduring magic, Alexander Zverev, the man leading the next generation of men's tennis, dazzled on his ATP Finals debut.

The 20-year-old German, ranked three in the world, was hot and cold against Croatia's Marin Cilic but, when it mattered most, he produced his best tennis to win 6-4 3-6 6-4.

Zverev, the youngest qualifier for the season-ender for nine years, appeared to be fading after a dazzling start, but surged back in style to join Federer on top of Boris Becker Group.

"It is different walking on here than any other stadium. The crowd, the atmosphere is amazing," Zverev, who revelled on the big stage, told reporters after the late-night finish.

"There were a lot of nerves involved in my first match. Obviously I'm happy that's behind me. I'm happy that I won."

Zverev possesses huge power off the ground, yet it was his finesse at the net which earned him a break in the opening game, picking off a low drop volley that gave Cilic no chance.

His forehand wavered at times as Cilic cleverly tried to take the pace off the ball with some floaty slices, but Zverev closed out the first set with an ace.

Cilic, back in London since his traumatic Wimbledon final defeat by Federer when he broke down in tears as blisters wrecked his big day, then took control.

The big Croat upped his serving and forehand power to level the match and then led 3-1 in the third set.

At 3-2, he was 40-15 up on serve but Zverev, wound-up by an erroneous over-rule, forged back to break with an exquisite lob.

Cilic then dropped serve to love at 4-5 to lose for the sixth time in seven matches at the year-ender.

Zverev, bidding to become the first German to finish the year in the world's top three since Boris Becker in 1994, will face a mouthwatering clash with Federer on Tuesday.

Six-times champion Federer had earlier beaten Jack Sock.

"I think anyone beating Federer in this group has a good chance of (reaching the semi-finals)," Zverev, who beat the Swiss to win this year's Montreal title, his second Masters 1000 title of the year, said.

"But he's the favourite definitely in all of the matches he plays. But I enjoy playing in front of big stages, big crowds."

(Reporting by Martyn Herman, editing by Pritha Sarkar / Ian Ransom)

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Federer stunned by Zverev in Montreal final

German fourth seed Alexander Zverev upset Roger Federer 6-3 6-4 in the Rogers Cup final in Montreal on Sunday to join the Swiss right-hander as the most trophy-laden player on the ATP Tour this year with five titles.

The 20-year-old German, who arrived in Montreal fresh from his triumph in Washington, proved up for the task right out of the gate as he had the Swiss second seed on his heels from the start on a sunny afternoon.


Zverev was poised and aggressive off the ground to create space for his power game and displayed some short-angled winners off thumping forehands and backhands to grab an early break for a 3-1 lead. He consolidated for a 4-1 cushion and ultimately closed out the opening set after a mere 30 minutes.

Federer, who entered the match 5-0 in finals this year, started to find his groove early in the second set but suddenly appeared out of sorts while Zverev broke in the seventh game to pull ahead 4-3 and held on for a surprise win that took 68 minutes.

The victory over the 19-times grand slam champion was the second ATP World Tour Masters 1000 title of the season for Zverev, who also beat Novak Djokovic in Rome.

"This one against Roger is something so special for me because he was always a great idol growing up for me," Zverev said during his trophy presentation. "The greatest player of all time, beating him in a final, not just any final but in the final of a Masters 1000, is amazing."

The win improved Zverev to 5-1 in finals this year with the only defeat coming at the hands of Federer at Halle.

Federer spent six months on the sidelines in the second half of last season but has returned to his very best this year by winning five titles, including a pair of grand slams at the Australian Open and Wimbledon.

He seemed ready to shift momentum early in the second set when he earned a trio of break points but Zverev saved them all in dominant fashion to hold for 1-1.

Zverev then grabbed the decisive break in the seventh game to pull ahead 4-3 before cruising to the finish line.

(Reporting by Frank Pingue in Toronto; Editing by Clare Fallon)

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Federer beats Haase, meets Zverev in Montreal final

Roger Federer used a dominant service game to beat Dutchman Robin Haase 6-3 7-6(5) in Montreal on Saturday, setting up a Rogers Cup final against German Alexander Zverev.

Haase, playing in his first ATP World Tour Masters 1000 semi-final, did well to force a second-set tiebreak but Federer proved too much to handle as the Swiss fired down nine aces and dropped only nine points on serve.

Federer, whose five titles this year include the Australian Open and Wimbledon, credited a positive mindset for helping him extend his winning streak to 16 matches.

"Confidence can get you a long way, and if you're feeling fine physically and you are ready to fight mentally you have a lot of things in the bag," said the 19-times grand slam champion.

"And then the only thing that maybe is missing is practice, but sometimes practice is overrated. It's all about the matches at some stage.

"I'm happy I'm playing as well as I am this year on the match courts. At the end that's what matters because I spent hours and hours on the practice courts in the last year."

Next up for the Swiss right-hander, who is seeking his third Rogers Cup title after triumphs in Toronto in 2004 and 2006, is Zverev after the fourth seed advanced with a 6-4 7-5 win over Canada's Denis Shapovalov.

Federer owns a 2-1 edge against Zverev in head-to-head meetings, most recently a 6-1 6-3 win at Halle in June.

Zverev ended Shapovalov's magical week on his third match point when the 18-year-old, who had been the story of the tournament after a stunning run that included an upset win over world number two Rafael Nadal, sent a backhand wide.

Shapovalov, who was born in Israel and moved to Canada before his first birthday, had a great chance at 4-3 in the second set but failed to convert on his three break points.

"I wasn't too sharp on the big points," said Shapovalov, who made headlines in February for inadvertently blasting a ball into an umpire's face in a fit of rage during a Davis Cup quarter-final.

"I had a couple looks at some second serves and I missed some returns. But at the end of the day he did a good job to make me play those points."

(Reporting by Frank Pingue in Toronto,; Editing by Neville Dalton/Peter Rutherford)

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Sizzling Zverev takes fourth title of the year

WASHINGTON -- Alexander Zverev issued a warning to top ATP rivals Sunday after winning the Citi Open for his fourth title of the year -- he's not the next generation, he's the now generation.

The 20-year-old German defeated South Africa's Kevin Anderson 6-4, 6-4 to capture the $355,460 (302,000 euros) top prize at the US Open tuneup event on the Washington hardcourts.


World number eight Zverev dropped only nine points on his serve and never faced a break point in becoming the youngest player to win four ATP titles in a year, or take the Washington crown, since Argentina's Juan Martin Del Potro did it at 19 in 2008.

"I improved a lot in the last few months to get where I can win tournaments," Zverev said. "The longer the tournament goes for me the better I'm able to play. Hopefully this can continue to be like that."

Zverev won his first title last September in St. Petersburg and added trophies this year at Montpellier, Munich and Rome, where he downed Novak Djokovic in the final.

He also ousted number four Stan Wawrinka at Miami and pushed Rafael Nadal to five sets in the third round of the Australian Open.

"I'm 'Next Gen' but the rankings say it for themselves," Zverev said. "I think I showed I can play with the big guys this year.

"I think I showed I'm not an 'in the future' kind of guy. I'm right now."

Only Wimbledon and Australian Open champion Roger Federer with five titles has won more ATP crowns this year than Zverev, and that's only because the Swiss star handed the German his lone finals loss of 2017 at Halle in June.

"A lot of people are looking at him as the face of tennis and the next Grand Slam champion," Anderson said of Zverev. "He seems to deal with it all pretty well. It will be interesting to see how the next little while progresses.

"I wouldn't be surprised if he wins a few Grand Slams. He definitely seems to be on a path in that direction."

Zverev, who will remain a career-best eighth in Monday's rankings, made a Slam-best fourth-round Wimbledon run, losing in five sets to Milos Raonic.

"Winning those types of matches is the next level I need to reach," Zverev said. "To get far in those events is my next goal."

Zverev thanked new co-coach Juan Carlos Ferrero, the former world number one from Spain who worked with him at an event for the first time this week.

"What a way to start together and hopefully we have many more years to come and many more titles together," Zverev said. "It's amazing what we've already accomplished."

 Makarova wins women's title

 
Russia's 58th-ranked Ekaterina Makarova prevented a German title sweep by rallying past 40th-ranked Julia Goerges 3-6, 7-6 (7/2), 6-0 for her third career WTA crown.

"I was dreaming to win this tournament and I'm so happy," Makarova said.

Makarova hadn't won a title since 2014 in Pattaya City. Her first WTA trophy came at Eastbourne in 2010.

In the men's final, Zverev took the only break of the first set in the third game when Anderson netted a forehand overhead smash. Zverev broke to open the second set and held from there, winning after 69 minutes when Anderson sent a backhand wide.

"The couple of times I had small openings he played really well," Anderson said.

Anderson, in his first ATP final since winning the 2015 Winston-Salem title, will jump from 45th to about 33rd in Monday's rankings, his best mark since standing 25th last August.

"I played some of my best tennis here," Anderson said. "That has been really encouraging."

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Federer to face Zverev in his 11th Halle final

HALLE, Germany - Top seed Roger Federer will challenge for a ninth Halle Open title against Alexander Zverev after reaching the Wimbledon warm-up event final with a 6-4 7-6(5) win over rising Russian talent Karen Khachanov on Saturday.

The 18-times grand-slam champion, who captured the Australian Open, Indian Wells and Miami titles this year, skipped the entire claycourt season to improve his chances of winning a record eighth title at the All England Club.

He will now face 20-year-old Zverev in a rematch of last year's semi-final, which the German won. Zverev booked his second successive final spot when he beat Frenchman Richard Gasquet 4-6 6-4 6-3.

Gasquet, a two-time Wimbledon semi-finalist, grabbed the first set against Zverev with a break at 5-4.

  
But he quickly fell behind in the second as Zverev, a finalist last year, who has already won three titles in 2017, charged to a 4-2 lead and held on to take the set.

The world number 12 booked his final spot after breaking at 3-3 and finishing the Frenchman off with another break to set up the showdown with Federer.

Despite a shock exit from Stuttgart on his comeback last week, Federer has improved in Halle and has not lost a set.

"I thought it was extremely close, especially that second set," Federer, who has never won a tournament nine times, told reporters.

"I'm still just very happy how I was able to close it out in the (tie-)breaker," said the 35-year-old.

He and Khachanov, 21, traded breaks in the first two games but Federer grabbed a second one to restore his advantage and clinch the first set on his second set point.

The Swiss lured the youngster to the net on several occasions, including at 4-4 in the second set when the Russian dumped a forehand volley into the net to give Federer two break points.

But instead of serving out the set, the top seed was broken again and the Russian even held two set points at 6-5 before the world number five recovered and forced a tiebreak.

He converted his first match point to reach an 11th Halle final.

(Reporting by Karolos Grohmann, editing by Pritha Sarkar, Neville Dalton)

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FRENCH OPEN: Zverev crashes as Murray, Wawrinka move on

PARIS, France -- Alexander Zverev, the man seen as a potential French Open champion, crashed out in the first round Tuesday as world number one Andy Murray and former winner Stan Wawrinka moved through.

Zverev, just 20 and fresh from his sensational Rome Masters demolition of Novak Djokovic, slumped to a 6-4, 3-6, 6-4, 6-2 defeat to Spain's Fernando Verdasco, 13 years his senior.

"I played absolute shit, that's why I lost," said Zverev bluntly.

"But life goes on, it's not a tragedy. In Rome I played fantastic, I won the tournament. Here I played bad, I lost first round. That's the way it goes."

In a match controversially suspended on Monday at one set each, Zverev was defeated in a fog of mistakes and despondency.

The beanpole German committed 50 unforced errors and drew jeers from the Philippe Chatrier court crowd when he took out his frustration by hammering his racquet into the clay.

Left-handed Verdasco, playing his 14th Roland Garros and 56th consecutive major, had lost to Zverev in the first round on clay in Madrid earlier this year.

But he is an experienced Grand Slam competitor, making the last 16 in Paris on five occasions.

"I practised really hard before this match against a great player like Alexander," said Verdasco who next plays France's Pierre-Hugues Herbert.

"Maybe it was my experience. You have to be ready emotionally and physically because it can be a long match."

Murray, the 2016 runner-up to Djokovic, shrugged off a second set wobble to defeat Russia's Andrey Kuznetsov 6-4, 4-6, 6-2, 6-0.

"He goes for his shots, he plays very aggressively and quite close to the baseline. He hits the ball pretty flat," said Murray, who showed few effects of the fever he carried into the event.


- Handshake snub -

Top seed Murray will play Martin Klizan of Slovakia who was accused a faking an injury in his five-set win over French wildcard Laurent Lokoli.

Lokoli was so angry at Klizan's actions on court that he refused to shake hands.

Third seed and 2015 champion Wawrinka was an easy winner, defeating Slovakian qualifier Jozef Kovalik 6-2, 7-6 (8/6), 6-3.

Wawrinka saved two set points in the second set tiebreaker before going on to down the 152nd-ranked qualifier.

Juan Martin del Potro marked his return to the French Open after an absence of five years by defeating Argentine compatriot Guido Pella 6-2, 6-1, 6-4.

"I love to be playing this tournament again after five years," said 2009 US Open champion Del Potro, who reached the quarter-finals in his last appearance in Paris before blowing a two-set lead against Roger Federer.

Japanese eighth seed Kei Nishikori was also a first round winner, beating unranked Thanasi Kokkinakis of Australia 4-6, 6-1, 6-4, 6-4.

In the women's event, Romanian third seed and 2014 runner-up Simona Halep cruised to a 6-2, 6-3 win over Slovakia's Jana Cepelova.

Halep, who had described her chances of playing in Paris as "50-50" due to an ankle ligament injury, will face Germany's Tatjana Maria for a place in the last 32.

Taiwan's Hsieh Su-Wei, the world number 109, stunned seventh seed Johanna Konta 1-6, 7-6 (7/2), 6-4.

Konta is the second top 10 woman to lose in the first three days after world number one Angelique Kerber was dumped out in the first round.

"I tried very hard and gave myself a big chance. Every time I tried to run as fast as I can and get the ball back," said Hsieh, who won for the just the second time in seven trips to Roland Garros.

Konta has yet to win one match in the main draw in three attempts.

There were no such problems for fifth-seeded Rome champion Elina Svitolina as the 2015 quarter-finalist defeated Yaroslava Shvedova of Kazakhstan 6-4, 6-3.

Canada's Eugenie Bouchard, a semi-finalist in 2014, shook off a right ankle injury to recover from 0-5 down in the first set to beat Rise Ozaki of Japan 2-6, 6-3, 6-2.

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Tennis: Zverev stuns Djokovic to win Italian Open

ROME -- German youngster Alexander Zverev pulled off the biggest win of his career on Sunday when he beat world number two Novak Djokovic 6-4 6-3 to win the Italian Open on Sunday.

Zverev, 20, was on top from the moment that he broke Djokovic in the very first game as he became the youngest winner of a Masters 1000 tournament since the Serb himself in Miami in 2007.

He controlled play from the back of the court with his fluid two-handed backhand and heavy forehand.

Zverev broke again in the third game of the second set and clinched the match with another break in the ninth game.

Djokovic, who has wrestled with injuries and lack of confidence since winning the French Open last June, had looked his old dominant self when he beat Dominic Thiem in Saturday's semi-final but was unable to recapture that form on Sunday.

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