For the second consecutive week there will be an All-American final with Taylor Fritz and Frances Tiafoe earning semifinal victories Saturday on grass in the Terra Wortman Open at Halle, Germany.
A day after defeating countryman Ben Shelton in a thriller, the fifth-seeded Fritz knocked off top-seed Alexander Zverev of Germany 6-7 (4), 6-4, 7-5 for his seventh consecutive victory over the French Open champion.
Fritz had 19 aces and won 85% of his first serves, while Zverev lost for the first time since before his French Open run began.
The unseeded Tiafoe cruised past wildcard Daniel Altmaier of Germany 6-1, 6-3 by converting all four break points he reached and saving the lone break point he faced. Altmaier won just 41% of his second-serve points.
HSBC Championships
Tommy Paul (8) earned a 6-3, 6-3 victory over Ugo Humbert of France to reach the final at London for the second time in three years.
Paul, the 2024 champion who did not compete in the event last year due to injury, won four of the six break-point chances he faced and won 52% of the points on Humbert’s second serve.
Paul will chase his second title of the year against seventh seed Francisco Cerundolo of Argentina, who was a 6-7 (5), 6-3, 6-4 winner over Brandon Nakashima.
Nakashima broke Cerundolo’s serve to force the first set tiebreak then finish off the set. Nakashima was then up a break in the second set before Cerundolo took charge by winning four consecutive games to carry momentum into the final set.
–Field Level Media
