MELBOURNE: Alexander Zverev reached his third Australian Open semifinal with a 7-6 (1), 7-6 (0), 2-6, 6-1 win over 12th-seeded Tommy Paul of the United States on Tuesday.
The No. 2-ranked Zverev had to save a set point in each of the first two sets but then dominated both tiebreakers.
Zverev is a two-time Grand Slam runner-up. He never has made it that far in Australia.
The German next plays the winner of a quarterfinal later Tuesday that he described as a “clash of generations” between 10-time Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic, who is 37, and four-time major winner Carlos Alcaraz, 21.
Zverev needed three match points — one on Paul's serve, and two more on his own — to clinch the victory, which he closed with an ace.
Paul was a semifinalist in Melbourne in 2023 and had won both of his previous matches against Zverev, but this was their first Grand Slam meeting.
“To be honest, I should have been down two sets to love. He played better than me," Zverev said. "I was not playing great, and I thought he was. I somehow won the first set, somehow won the second set I’m in the semifinals, somehow.”
He called the Djokovic-Alcaraz quarterfinal “probably the highlight match of the whole tournament.”
“Two of the best players that probably ever touched a tennis racket," Zverev said. "It’s a clash of generations.”