Zverev battles Fritz in Stuttgart Open final
STUTTGART: Alexander Zverev reached the final of the Stuttgart Open where he faces nemesis Taylor Fritz in a duel of top seeds in his bid for a second title of the year on Sunday.
Top seed Zverev saved a set point in the first set of his semifinal on Saturday against another American, third seed Ben Shelton, to win7-6 (10-8), 7-6 (7-1).
Fritz defeated Canadian fourth seed Felix Auger-Alliasime 6-4, 7-6(7-5) on a hot afternoon.
Fritz has won the last four matches against Zverev to lead their series 7-5, including at last year's Wimbledon, US Open and ATP Finals.
Neither Zverev nor Fritz faced a break point on Saturday while Zverev wasted six break points against the big serving Shelton.
"I am happy to be in the final. I will do everything to win tomorrow," Zverev told broadcasters DF1 as he bids for a first title on grass and 25th of his career.
In a rematch of their recent Munich final which Zverev won, the German wasted two break points against Shelton before taking the tight tie-break on his fifth set point with a service winner.
Zverev had a slight wobble by missing the first three after leading6-3, and then had to save one at 7-6 down after conceding four points in a row.
Two more break points for Zverev came and went early in the second set, and another two — then match points - at 5-4. But Zverev then breezed through the second tie-break and wrapped up matters with his15 ace on fourth match point, to go with 35 winners.
"It was a good match. I had break points, but not really because he fired an ace and winners. He is probably the best server in the world," Zverev said.
Earlier, Fritz hit 10 aces and did not face a break point against Auger-Alliasime who managed 15 aces but also accumulated 23 unforced errors, while Fritz had just 12.
Fritz clinched the first set thanks to a break in the 10th game when Auger-Alliasime hit a forehand wide on a hot afternoon.
Fritz missed his second break point in the fourth game of the second set but prevailed in the tie-break on second match point when Auger-Alliasime hit a backhand wide.
"I am so happy. It seemed it came down to a few points. I felt very lucky to get break in first set. I had more chances in the second.The tiebreak was close but it is great to be in the final," Fritz said.
Last year's US Open and ATP Finals runner-up Fritz bounced back well from a disappointing first-round exit at the recent French Open in his start into the grass court season, where he was won three of his eight career titles — all of them in Eastbourne. Speaking before the second semifinal, Fritz said he has no preference: "I don't care, it will be a very tough match either way."
Stuttgart is among the tune-up events for Wimbledon which starts on June 30. — dpa
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Observer
15 hours ago
- Observer
Burns fires 65 to grab US Open lead
OAKMONT, Pennsylvania: Sam Burns held the second round clubhouse lead at the US Open on Friday as overnight leader J J Spaun struggled late at Oakmont Country Club while Rory McIlroy was flirting with the cutline and Bryson DeChambeau looked certain to head home early. Burns went out early from the 10th tee and covered the punishing Oakmont layout with a sparkling five-under-par 65 that put him at three under on the week for the year's third major and one shot clear of Spaun (72). Burns, who mixed six birdies with a lone bogey, ran into trouble at his final hole where an errant tee shot forced him to take a penalty drop but left his next shot on the green and then curled in a 22-foot, left-to-right putt up the hill to save par. Spaun had led Burns, who finished hours earlier, by one shot with four holes to play but fell back after a three-putt bogey at the 15th, where his birdie attempt raced by the cup, and another dropped shot at the par-three 16th. A determined Spaun drew level with a 22-foot bounceback birdie at the 17th but was unable to scramble for par at the last after finding the rough behind the green. Viktor Hovland chipped in from the greenside rough for eagle at his eighth hole, the par-four 17th, en route to a 68 and was two shots back of Burns and one of just three players in the clubhouse under par on the week. Pre-tournament favourite Scottie Scheffler, fresh off the worst first-round score relative to par of his majors career, mixed four birdies and five bogeys for a one-over 71 that left him at four over on the week. Defending champion Bryson DeChambeau, who came into the week looking to become the first back-to-back US Open winner since Brooks Koepka in 2018, was at 10 over on the week with one hole to play. — Reuters
Observer
15 hours ago
- Observer
Zverev battles Fritz in Stuttgart Open final
STUTTGART: Alexander Zverev reached the final of the Stuttgart Open where he faces nemesis Taylor Fritz in a duel of top seeds in his bid for a second title of the year on Sunday. Top seed Zverev saved a set point in the first set of his semifinal on Saturday against another American, third seed Ben Shelton, to win7-6 (10-8), 7-6 (7-1). Fritz defeated Canadian fourth seed Felix Auger-Alliasime 6-4, 7-6(7-5) on a hot afternoon. Fritz has won the last four matches against Zverev to lead their series 7-5, including at last year's Wimbledon, US Open and ATP Finals. Neither Zverev nor Fritz faced a break point on Saturday while Zverev wasted six break points against the big serving Shelton. "I am happy to be in the final. I will do everything to win tomorrow," Zverev told broadcasters DF1 as he bids for a first title on grass and 25th of his career. In a rematch of their recent Munich final which Zverev won, the German wasted two break points against Shelton before taking the tight tie-break on his fifth set point with a service winner. Zverev had a slight wobble by missing the first three after leading6-3, and then had to save one at 7-6 down after conceding four points in a row. Two more break points for Zverev came and went early in the second set, and another two — then match points - at 5-4. But Zverev then breezed through the second tie-break and wrapped up matters with his15 ace on fourth match point, to go with 35 winners. "It was a good match. I had break points, but not really because he fired an ace and winners. He is probably the best server in the world," Zverev said. Earlier, Fritz hit 10 aces and did not face a break point against Auger-Alliasime who managed 15 aces but also accumulated 23 unforced errors, while Fritz had just 12. Fritz clinched the first set thanks to a break in the 10th game when Auger-Alliasime hit a forehand wide on a hot afternoon. Fritz missed his second break point in the fourth game of the second set but prevailed in the tie-break on second match point when Auger-Alliasime hit a backhand wide. "I am so happy. It seemed it came down to a few points. I felt very lucky to get break in first set. I had more chances in the tiebreak was close but it is great to be in the final," Fritz said. Last year's US Open and ATP Finals runner-up Fritz bounced back well from a disappointing first-round exit at the recent French Open in his start into the grass court season, where he was won three of his eight career titles — all of them in Eastbourne. Speaking before the second semifinal, Fritz said he has no preference: "I don't care, it will be a very tough match either way." Stuttgart is among the tune-up events for Wimbledon which starts on June 30. — dpa
Observer
2 days ago
- Observer
China's Zheng survives scare to reach Queen's last eight
LONDON: Zheng Qinwen survived a scare to reach the Queen's Club quarter-finals as the Chinese top seed beat McCartney Kessler 6-3, 4-6, 7-5 on Thursday. Zheng trailed 4-2 in the final set of the last 16 clash against the world number 42. But the Paris Olympic champion roared back to avoid a shock defeat at the Wimbledon warm-up event in west London. Zheng beat Donna Vekic on the clay at Roland Garros last year to become the first Asian player to win Olympic gold in a singles event and also reached the Australian Open final in 2024. The 22-year-old, currently fifth in the WTA rankings, bowed out in the French Open quarter-finals recently and is hoping to make her first strong run at Wimbledon, where she has never been past the third round in three visits. Success at Queen's would be a significant boost to her Wimbledon aspirations and next up for the Chinese star is a last eight clash with former US Open champion Emma Raducanu. British wildcard Raducanu eased to a 6-4, 6-1 victory over Slovakian Rebecca Sramkova. The 22-year-old will officially become British number one on Monday after compatriot Katie Boulter suffered a 2-6, 6-3, 6-2 defeat against Russian fifth seed Diana Shnaider. Raducanu has been troubled by poor form and back spasms throughout her 2025 campaign, but the world number 37 has been revitalised by playing in front of the British crowd at Queen's. "It wasn't easy. I don't think it was my cleanest performance, but I'm really happy to have pushed through in some tight moments," she said. "It was really helpful when it was coming back in the first set to have that roar of support to help me get through that last service game, so I appreciate that!" In the first women's event at Queen's for 52 years, 2022 Wimbledon champion and fourth seed Elena Rybakina made the quarter-finals with a 6-4, 6-2 win against Britain's Heather Watson. Rybakina will play Germany's Tatjana Maria in the last eight on Friday, while Australian Open holder Madison Keys faces Shnaider and Emma Navarro takes on fellow American Amanda Anisimova. — AFP
