BSP-04 Defending champion Zverev advances to Washington final

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Defending champion Zverev advances to Washington final

WASHINGTON, Aug 5, 2018 (AFP) – Third-ranked defending champion Alexander
Zverev reached the Washington Open final Saturday by defeating Greek teen
Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-2, 6-4 to launch the first all-21-or-under ATP semi-
finals in 23 years.

Germany’s Zverev, the oldest of the last four at 21, will play Sunday for
the $384,120 (331,637 euros) top prize against the later winner between
Russian Andrey Rublev, 20, and 19-year-old Australian Alex De Minaur.

“I’m playing great and hopefully I can win,” Zverev said. “I hope I get out
there and play a good match and get to Toronto with another title.”

Zverev seeks his ninth career ATP title and third of the year after Munich
and Madrid. He also was runner-up at Miami and Rome.

Top seed Zverev could join a Washington back-to-back champions list that
includes Argentina’s Juan Martin del Potro (2008-09) plus Americans Andre
Agassi (1990-91 and 1998-99) and Michael Chang (1996-97).

Not since 1995 at Buenos Aires had the ATP seen a completely 21-and-under
semi-final lineup and it’s a first in the Washington event’s half-century
history.

“This is amazing for tennis,” Zverev said. “It’s good to see the young guns
come up.” It won’t quite be the youngest ATP final this year if De Minaur
makes it. Combined ages would be two days older than the Aussie’s final in
January at Sydney against Daniil Medvedev — the youngest ATP final since 20-
year-old Rafael Nadal played 19-year-old Novak Djokovic in 2007 at Indian
Wells.

Tsitsipas, 19, is ranked a career-high 32nd. He became the first Greek ATP
finalist in 45 years in April at Barcelona and enjoyed the rise of the young
guns this week.

“It’s good for the next generation,” Tsitsipas said. “I’d like to see this
more often. I’m sure we’ll face each other for many years to come. It’s an
evolution to the sport.”

Zverev broke in the third and fifth games of the opening set, which he took
in 34 minutes with his third of five aces, the Greek slapping his forehand in
frustration.

“I tried to rush him, play quicker so he’s not the one who’s playing
aggressive,” Zverev said.

The German broke Tsitsipas again on his fourth chance during an epic 15-
minute ninth game of the second set. Zverev held a final time to settle
matters after 88 minutes.

“I had to be a bit more smart on my advantage points,” Tsitsipas said. “I
got tight and I wanted to win it too badly. I will be learning from this.”

– Kuznetsova reaches final –

In the companion WTA event, two-time Grand Slam champion Svetlana
Kuznetsova of Russia won 6-2, 6-2 twice to reach the final, first downing
Kazakh eighth seed Yulia Putintseva in a match that had been halted by rain
then dispatching Germany’s Andrea Petkovic.

World number 128 Kuznetsova, the 2004 US Open and 2009 French Open champion
as well as a 2014 Washington winner, will play for the title Sunday against
either Croatian seventh seed Donna Vekic or China’s 85th-ranked Zheng Saisai.

Neither De Minaur nor Rublev has beaten Zverev, the Aussie falling in a
Davis Cup fifth-set tie-breaker earlier this year and Rublev losing in
straight sets in 2016 at Monaco and last year at Beijing.

Rublev, who won his only ATP title last year at Umag, beat American Denis
Kudla 6-1, 6-4, in a quarter-final delayed from Friday by rain. Rublev,
ranked 46th, only returned in July from a three-month layoff due to a lower
back stress fracture.

De Minaur advanced by walkover when three-time Grand Slam champion Andy
Murray withdrew Friday after his third grueling three-set victory in four
days. Murray was in only his third event back after an 11-month spell out of
action due to a right hip injury.

BSS/AFP/MSY/0912 hrs