French Open: Alexander Zverev beats Carlos Alcaraz to reach Paris semi-finals
- Published
Alexander Zverev will contest the fifth Grand Slam semi-final of his career, aiming to reach his second major final
French Open 2022 |
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Dates: 22 May-5 June Venue: Roland Garros, Paris |
Coverage: Live text and radio commentaries of selected matches across BBC Radio 5 Live Sports Extra, the BBC Sport website and app |
Third seed Alexander Zverev reached the French Open semi-finals for the second successive year after surviving teenage sensation Carlos Alcaraz's fightback.
Continuing his quest for a maiden Grand Slam title, Zverev won 6-4 6-4 4-6 7-6 (9-7) against the sixth seed.
The German, 25, served strongly and was superb from the back of court, but 19-year-old Alcaraz made too many errors.
A semi-final against 13-time winner Rafael Nadal, who beat defending champion Novak Djokovic, awaits Zverev.
"I knew I had to play my absolute best tennis from the start," said Zverev.
"He is an incredible player and I told him at the net he will win this tournament many times, not just once.
"I hope I can win it once before he does - and starts beating us all."
Spain's Alcaraz improved his level to force a fourth set which hung captivatingly in the balance and created a fervent atmosphere on Court Philippe-Chatrier.
A double fault from Alcaraz on a break point at 4-4 gave Zverev an opportunity to serve out victory, but the youngster broke back and then sent the set into a tie-break.
The pair produced the highest quality of the whole contest amid the tension, with Zverev taking his second match point with a sweet backhand winner.
"I had to stay calm throughout the whole match, even though I feel like I left chances in the third set behind," he added.
"I had to stay calm when I lost the third set and when I didn't serve out the fourth set at 5-4.
"In the end I got there and I had to win the match myself, which I'm happy that I did."
World number three Zverev lost to Greece's Stefanos Tsitsipas in the semi-finals at Roland Garros last year and reached the same stage by producing his best performance of this tournament.
Now, after beating Alcaraz to earn his first win over a top-10 opponent at a major, Zverev will aim to go one step further.
The Olympic champion has lost three of his four previous major semi-finals, and when he did progress, was beaten in the 2020 US Open final by Austria's Dominic Thiem.
Alcaraz pays price for slow start
Alcaraz has been the talk of the men's game in an impressive season which has seen him claim a tour-high four titles and win 32 of 35 matches going into the second major quarter-final of his career.
But he paid the price for being far below his best in the opening two sets against Zverev, who avenged defeat in their recent encounter at the Madrid Open final.
Alcaraz was awry with his returning game from the start, looking a little too eager, and perhaps a sign of nerves relating to the magnitude of the occasion.
He hit 32 unforced errors compared to 18 winners in the opening two sets and was particularly let down by his backhand.
Supported by the majority of the Chatrier crowd, Alcaraz started the third set well as he aimed to win from two down for the first time in career.
Using the drop shot was his most potent weapon. Luring Zverev forward and dragging him out of position helped Alcaraz take the first of two set points in the third, sparking a passionate celebration which symbolised the changing mood in the arena.
His level continued to rise as he maintained scoreboard pressure by holding serve in the fourth set.
A volley into the net on set point in the tie-breaker proved costly, Zverev fighting back to end Alcaraz's 14-match winning streak.
"At this level, a quarter-final of a Grand Slam, you are playing against the best players in the world so you have to start the match better than I did," said the teenager.
"I have to take the lesson.
"I leave the court, leave the tournament with my head very high. I fought until the last ball, until the last second and I'm proud of it."