Stefanos Tsitsipas becomes sixth player to book ATP Finals berth
On Thursday afternoon at the French ATP Masters 1000 event, Stefanos Tsitsipas defeated Alexander Zverev 7-6(2), 6-4 in a big-serving battle for a place in Turin.
Given their relative positions heading into the match, the last 16 contest was an effective playoff for a spot in Turin.
In addition to recording his 50th win of the season at the tour level, Tsitsipas also guaranteed his place in the season-ending ATP Finals with a phenomenal display of clean-hitting that included 37 winners, among them 10 aces.
Tsitsipas improved to 9-4 in his ATP Tour Head-to-Head series against Zverev with his one-hour, 59-minute victory.
After sealing his Turin place for the fifth consecutive year, Tsitsipas said: “It’s awesome. What a great relief to finally get that spot.
“I’ve been working extremely hard the whole year to be in Turin, and it’s a moment of relief that I’ve made it to one of my favourite events of the year. I get the opportunity to play in front of my Italian fans but also get some Greek people in.
“I’m thrilled to be playing good tennis. I’m humbled in victory now, and I really want to keep going strong and show some of my potential out there on the Bercy court.”
Tsitsipas has had difficulty regaining his peak performance in recent months, following a solid first half of the season.
The Greek suffered a slump in form after winning his 10th ATP Tour title in Los Cabos in August, but he was back to being close to his best form going into this week’s Masters 1000 tournament in the French capital, having advanced to the semifinals in Antwerp and Vienna.
With a break of Zverev’s serve in the second game, Tsitsipas jumped out to an early 5-2 lead on Thursday inside Accor Arena. But as Zverev stormed back into the set, he had to maintain his cool, and Tsitsipas did so in fine fashion in the tie-break to advance.
Early in the second set, Zverev would lament another crucial error on serve. Tsitsipas broke in the opening game, and he held onto his lead this time around by serving out without having to face another break point.
In his quest for his third Masters 1000 title before turning his focus to Turin, Tsitsipas’ first Top 10 victory of the year was a timely lift for the Greek against a top opponent.
He says that he feels a lot of hard work in training has paid off.
“I’ve talked about putting a lot of hours in on court and working on a lot of things,” said Tsitsipas.
“[The return] is one of them. It’s important to keep working on it, there is a lot to work on in my game. I always strive and aim for slight improvements that can perhaps give my game a little bit of a boost in the next few months. Hopefully that improvement will carry on for years to come.”
Tsitsipas goes on to face Karen Khachanov in the last eight in Paris.
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