The round robin matches at the O2 may have been underwhelming but the semi-finals kicked off with a bang as Alexander Zverev stunned Roger Federer yesterday afternoon.
Both men had appeared out of sorts earlier in the week, but a dramatic leap in quality saw the German defeat the Swiss 7-5 7-6 (7-5) to deny him a first appearance in the finale of the ATP Finals since 2015.
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The six-time champion has made more appearances at this event (16) than any other player and holds the most titles, but the 21-year-old’s youthful exuberance trumped experience on this occasion.
By claiming the win, Zverev became the first German finalist at the season-ending tournament in 22 years, with the last being Boris Becker who finished as runner-up to American great Pete Sampras in 1996. He will face either Novak Djokovic or Kevin Anderson this evening.