(Reuters) – German third seed Alexander Zverev knocked Stefanos Tsitsipas out of the Paris Masters with a 7-5 6-4 win in the quarter-finals on Friday, ending the Greek’s hopes of qualifying for the season-ending ATP Finals in Turin, Italy.
While the opening set was a tight affair, the second was one-way traffic as world number three Zverev built a 5-3 lead before wrapping up the victory in one hour and 40 minutes.
Zverev served well against the 10th seed, especially in the second set, firing down nine aces and winning 71% of his first serves in the contest.
“I thought the whole match was a very good level from him,” Zverev said. “I got into the match and I found my rhythm and felt more and more comfortable and am happy with the win.”
The 27-year-old, who improved his head-to-head record with Tsitsipas to 6-10, joins Novak Djokovic and Rafa Nadal as the only active players to reach 20 or more Masters semi-finals.
However, the defeat means former world number three Tsitsipas’ run of five straight ATP Finals appearances is over.
(Reporting by Pearl Josephine Nazare in Bengaluru; Editing by Ken Ferris)
