Alex de Minaur upset top seed Alexander Zverev 6-4, 1-6, 7-6(4) to reach the Vienna Open final, where he meets Carlos Alcaraz, a 6-4, 7-6(2) winner over Daniil Medvedev. Zverev will still replace Jannik Sinner as world No. 1 on Monday.
Vienna, Austria: The Wiener Stadthalle was expecting a coronation week and got an upset instead. Zverev arrived at the Erste Bank Open semi-finals with the top ranking waiting for him on Monday, and left it knowing a title would not be part of the package. Alcaraz, a wild card in the draw, will wait for the winner of that duel in Sunday’s final, having beaten Medvedev in straight sets.
De Minaur holds his nerve in the decider
The fifth-seeded Australian took the opening set 6-4, only for Zverev to level the match with a 6-1 second set. The decider was a duel of serves. Neither player was broken in the third set, and de Minaur had created far more openings across the match, earning 14 break-point chances to Zverev’s three, though he converted only one of them.
It came down to a tie-break, and de Minaur seized it. He won Zverev’s first two service points to open a 3-0 lead and held on to it. He closed out the contest on his third match point to reach his 12th career final, a result that also moves him into the top eight of the ATP Finals race.
Alcaraz too good for Medvedev
Earlier on Saturday, Alcaraz beat Medvedev in two sets. He broke for 3-1 in the first set and closed it out 6-4, then broke again in the second for a 4-2 lead, only for Medvedev to break straight back and eventually force a tie-break. Alcaraz was dominant there, winning it 7-2 on his first match point to complete a 6-4, 7-6(2) victory. Medvedev, who had already booked his place at the ATP Finals in the quarter-finals, leaves Vienna having taken the match to a tie-break but no further.
Zverev’s ranking milestone arrives anyway
The loss does not stop the headline change in the rankings. Zverev, 29, replaces Sinner at No. 1 on Monday, becoming the 30th different player to hold the top spot and the oldest first-time No. 1 since 1974. The semi-final defeat means he will take the ranking without adding the Vienna title to it.
For de Minaur, who beat Matteo Berrettini 7-6(4), 6-2 in the quarter-finals, the stakes are different. A title in Vienna would add to a season in which he has now pushed himself firmly into the ATP Finals picture, and Alcaraz stands in his way on Sunday.
Semi-final results (Erste Bank Open, ATP 500, Vienna): Alex de Minaur (AUS, 5) d. Alexander Zverev (GER, 1) 6-4, 1-6, 7-6(4); Carlos Alcaraz (ESP, WC) d. Daniil Medvedev 6-4, 7-6(2). Final (Sunday): de Minaur v Alcaraz.
