Germany’s top seed Alexander Zverev booked his spot in the Stuttgart Open final with a hard-fought 7-6(8), 7-6(1) win over American Ben Shelton in the semifinals on Saturday. The match, filled with high-quality tennis from both players, lasted just over two hours and saw Zverev extend his unbeaten head-to-head record against Shelton to 3-0.
Zverev, currently ranked world No. 3, delivered an impressive performance in front of his home crowd, firing 15 aces and 35 winners without facing a single break point. With this win, the 28-year-old has now reached his first grasscourt final in eight years.
Despite the loss, Shelton, seeded third, can take plenty of positives from his run in Stuttgart. The 22-year-old is set to break into the ATP top 10 for the first time in his career when the new rankings are released on Monday.
In the day’s earlier semifinal, second seed Taylor Fritz powered past Canada’s Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-4, 7-6(5). The American, ranked No. 7 in the world, was dominant on serve, hitting 10 aces and 23 winners, and winning 86% of his first-serve points.
Fritz, a two-time Wimbledon quarterfinalist, is now eyeing his fourth career title on grass and will take confidence into Sunday’s final. He leads Zverev 7-5 in their head-to-head record, adding intrigue to their upcoming showdown.
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