Alexander Zverev justified his favorite tag by beating Alex de Minaur in straight sets to secure his fourth consecutive semi-final at the Roland Garros.
The German loves to play in Paris, and booking a fourth consecutive Roland Garros semi-final proves that. His general problem was making the final because he’s yet to do it. This year is a pretty decent chance for him as he’s playing some really good tennis.
It started with him beating Rafael Nadal in the opening round, and he’s kept his level high to navigate some really tricky matchups. In the quarter-final was another one, as he was facing a player who’s not necessarily known for being a great clay player.
Even so, de Minaur proved in this match that he belongs on this surface, albeit he’s not quite on the level of Zverev yet. The opening set wasn’t that strong from either player as both misfired often; however, the fourth seed still found a way to win it 6-4 despite losing his serve relatively early.
Both played a bit better in the second set, but they still misfired more often than not. The set ended up in a tie-break, and de Minaur opened with a 4-0 lead but then lost it. he also lost the tie-break 5-7, giving his opponent a 2-0 advantage.
Zverev was clearly dealing with fatigue in this match, and de Minaur’s lack of shot-making really hurt him in big moments. The third set was a prime example of that because when he really needed to find something special, the Australian simply couldn’t.
He doesn’t have it in his arsenal and Zverev generally walled his defensive style well. A break midway through the third ensured Zverev the chance to finish the match off and he did, winning the match 6-4, 7-6(5), 6-4 to set up a semi-final match with Casper Ruud.