World No. 3 Alexander Zverev qualifies for the semi-finals of the ATP Finals for the 3rd time as he defeats Hubert Hurkacz in the third round-robin match of the 2021 ATP Finals. Zverev won the match 6-2, 6-4 and finishes 2nd in the Red Group behind World No. 2 and defending champion Daniil Medvedev who was the first player to qualify for the semis this year.
It was a do-or-die match for the German as he had 1 win and 1 loss coming into the match and a defeat in this match could have dented his chance massively to move into the last-4. Zverev was heavily dominant in the match that lasted just 62 minutes hitting 22 winners and committed just 8 unforced errors.
“Today was a tough match mentally because I needed to win, so I was 100 per cent focused. It was very up and down, and I am happy to be through and win in straight sets. You can always improve. The margins are always very small between the top players, but to win you have to do the details right. I hope I can do that on Saturday.” said Zverev.
This is his third appearance in the semi-finals after winning the title in 2018 and then finishing as a semi-finalist in 2019. He was defeated in the round-robin stage in the 2020 edition.
Alexander Zverev to meet Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals
In the rematch of the finals of the 2018 ATP Finals, Zverev will now meet Novak Djokovic who with his 2 consecutive wins in the Green Group has booked his spot in the semis having sealed the top-spot form himself. This will be the third meeting between the two at the ATP Finals and their first since the Serbian got the better of Zverev in the 3rd round-robin match last year.
This will be the 11th overall meeting between them and their fifth of the year having last met in the semi-finals of the 2021 US Open where Novak won a thrilling 5-setter. Speaking about the meeting Zverev said, “I have played Novak in every single big hard-court tournament this year. We are making a habit of playing in the later rounds at big tournaments. It is going to be an entertaining one I think.”
Zverev will now meet Djokovic in the semi-finals on Saturday, as for Hurkacz, he ends the season with a Miami Masters title, a semi-final appearance at the 2021 Wimbledon and breaking into the Top-10 for the very first time.
