Tennis - Alexander Zverev again in the final in Hamburg
Tennis player Alexander Zverev reached the final once again at the ATP500 Tournament in Hamburg. He impressed yet again, just as he did against Chinese player Zhang Zhizhen in the quarterfinals, against Spanish player Pedro Martinez, winning in 1:24 hours with a score of 6:2, 6:4. The nearly 10,000 spectators in the stadium at Rothenbaum celebrated Zverev after his second match point.
In the Final on Sunday (3:00 PM/Sky), he will face the Frenchman Arthur Fils. The 20-year-old had also defeated Argentine Sebastian Baéz just as convincingly with a score of 6:2, 6:2. In the previous year, Fils had lost to Zverev in the semifinals.
Zverev impresses in the first set
The fourth-ranked player came out strongly against Martinez, just as he had against Zhang. It was apparent that the 27-year-old was having knee problems during the breaks, which he spent standing as he had earlier in the tournament. However, there was no sign of hindrance from Zverev during the match itself. Once again, his serve was his best weapon. He hit 13 aces in total this time. After breaks at 2:1 and 5:2, he won the first set comfortably with a score of 6:2. In the second set, he took Martinez's serve right away in the first game. However, Martinez improved, and Zverev made some unnecessary errors, letting some break chances go unused. This could not stop him, though.
In his home tournament in Hamburg, Alexander Zverev aims to secure the ATP500 title, marking his third finals appearance in the city. The Final against Arthur Fils is set for Sunday, with Zverev seeking revenge from last year's semifinals loss. Despite Martinez's convincing victories leading up to the semifinals, Zverev managed to clinch the win in an ATP500 home tournament, adding to his impressive record.
