Reaching his first ATP Masters 1000 final in Paris, France’s Ugo Humbert will face Germany’s Alexander Zverev on Sunday at home after both won their semi-finals on Saturday.
Humbert, 26, a native of Metz, about 200 miles east of Paris, downed Russia’s Karen Khachanov 6-7(6), 6-4, 6-3 in front of a home crowd at the Rolex Paris Masters.
Humbert is the fifth Frenchman to reach the final in Paris and the first since 2011, when Jo-Wilfried Tsonga fell to Roger Federer. Tsonga became the last Frenchman to win the title, defeating defending champion David Nalbandian in 2008.
“It’s amazing to do it in Paris in my favorite competition. It’s a dream,” said Humbert, who has won titles in Dubai and Marseille this year. “It was a little difficult compared to previous matches. I felt pressure, and after losing the first set, I tried to enjoy the moment and be with the crowd. I did very well and I am very proud.”
In the other semi-final, third-seeded Zverev defeated former Paris champion Holger Rune of Denmark 6-3, 7-6(4) for his 65th win of the season. Zverev, the world No. 3 player, is paired with world No. 1 Italian multiple ATP winner Jannik Sinner in 2024.
“I feel like I made it difficult for myself, but he’s a champion,” Zverev, 27, said of Rune. “It’s probably his favorite tournament and his favorite venue, but I’m happy to be in my second final here. I’m looking forward to it.”
For Humbert, he won his 13th consecutive match against the strong indoor field in France after meeting 32 winners against Khachanov, the former Paris champion. Seeking his seventh tour-level title, 15th-seeded Humbert moved up four spots to No. 14 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings and will be ranked as career-best No. 11 if he wins on Sunday.
Khachanov suffered a medial timeout with a leg injury in the sixth game of the third set, then the world number 21 struggled to move during the final two games of the nearly three-hour match.
As for Zverev, who earlier this season won the ATP Masters 1000 event in Rome, he is looking for his first Paris title after losing to Daniil Medvedev in the 2020 final. Zverev is also looking for his seventh ATP Masters 1000 title.
Against Rune, Zverev hit 25 winners and won 82 percent (37 of 45) of his first points in the match, but he had to go to a second tiebreaker game to finally dispose of his tough opponent.
If he wins on Sunday, it would be the seventh ATP Masters 1000 crown for Zverev, who has won twice each in Rome and Madrid and one title each in Cincinnati and Montreal.
–Field Level Media
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