Hubert Hurkacz avenges United Cup defeat by powering past Alexander Zverev at Halle Open, faces Jannik Sinner in final
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Updated 22/06/2024 at 16:02 GMT
Hubert Hurkacz enhanced his reputation as a fine grass-court player with a straight-sets win over Alexander Zverev at the Halle Open semi-finals. It was a dominant display from the 27-year-old, as Zverev's struggles on grass continued. Hurkacz - who won this competition in 2022 - will play Jannik Sinner in the final after he beat Zhizhen Zhang.
Highlights: Hurkacz beats Zverev to reach Halle Open final
Hubert Hurkacz avenged his United Cup defeat to Alexander Zverev earlier this year with a comprehensive 7-6(2) 6-4 victory over the world No. 4 in the Halle Open semi-finals to set up a meeting with Jannik Sinner in the final.
Hurkacz was representing Poland in the men’s singles match at the team competition in Sydney in January, as Zverev - playing for Germany - saved two championship points before his nation prevailed in the decisive doubles encounter.
The Pole claimed his first win against a top-10 ranked player this year after ending a four-match losing run against such opponents, and a first against Zverev on the German’s home soil.
As for Zverev, his wait for a first title on grass continued and compounded his recent semi-final woes, with this his 11th defeat from 15 previous last-four clashes on the main tour since the start of 2023.
Speaking after the match Hurkacz revealed his joy playing on the surface, claiming: “I love grass” in his post-match interview.
He said: “Sascha [Zverev] is such a great competitor; he was playing some incredible tennis after reaching the French Open final and was playing at a really high level.
“My previous match against him at the beginning of the year in the United Cup finals was sitting in the back of the mind. I had two match points against Sascha, and I thought to myself: ‘not today.’
“I’m really confident on my serve, I’ve been serving well. There were some moments where he had hit some love 30s, but I still thought I could get some good points and shots to win those games. I stayed calm.
“I really love grass; the surface suits my game and the atmosphere of having a full crowd is really incredible.”
Hurkacz claimed a hard-fought hold in the seventh game after aggressively swatting away four break-point opportunities for the German, with none materialising for either player in the opening six games.
A first set tie-break belied the cagey nature of the opener - as the Pole comprehensively prevailed 6-2 and sealed the deal with a superb ace.
Hurkacz moved a set and a break up in the third game of the second set, which seemed even more significant considering it was the first time Zverev had been broken in this tournament.
The world No. 9 was one game away from another appearance in the final in Halle after showcasing a devastating array of serve-and-volley play, leaving Zverev on the ropes.
The Pole would go onto serve for the match, doing so with an emphatic hold to love and sealing a place in another final in Halle.
Sinner overcomes spirited Zhang in straight sets
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Highlights: Sinner beats Zhang to book place in Halle Open final
Hurkacz will meet Sinner in the final after the Italian ground out a 6-4 7-6(3) win over Zhizhen Zhang.
Despite moving to the top of the ATP rankings, this was the first time that the 22-year-old had progressed to the final of a tour-level event on grass.
Meanwhile, it ended a career-best run on the surface for Zhang, who had already claimed the scalp of Daniil Medvedev on his run to the last four.
“It means a lot; I had four very tough matches to get to the final," Sinner said. "First of all, it’s great preparation to go to Wimbledon.
“After here, I have one week off, which is good for me and also good for the body. It was a good match today, and that's exactly what I what I needed.
“He [Zhang] returned really well and there were some moments where I had to be very careful. I had to save one set point in the second set, otherwise this would’ve gone to three sets.”
When looking ahead to Sunday's meeting with Hurkacz in the final, he added: “Well it's going to be very even. He plays so well on this surface, he has won here already and knows this court really well.
“It’s going to be tough, but I’m going to enjoy tomorrow in any case, because it’s always a huge honour and privilege to play in a final.”
Zhang was more than holding his own against the world No. 1 in the opening exchanges, before Sinner eventually broke through the Chinese player’s serve for the first time at 5-4.
A netted return from Zhang yielded two set points for Sinner with the Italian serving for the opener, and he prevailed on the second of those with a ferocious ace.
The world No. 42 looked unperturbed by the setback though, and continued to be a tough nut to crack with his impressive service game.
Crucially, Sinner was looking equally resolute on his serve, and you sensed that a tie-break was on the cards in this keenly contested affair.
That came after Zhang was left to rue squandering his first set-point, and Sinner found the range required to land some delightful shots to take a straight-sets win that was far from straightforward.
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