AWhen Alexander Zverev converted his first match ball against Tomas Martin Etcheverry after 3:22 hours of play, sweet life was finally over. No more playing your way through a Grand Slam tournament on quiet feet: respected by the entire tennis world for his skills, but given the previous months’ mediocre results, he was not considered one of the favorites to win the tournament at the French Open.
But after the Olympic champion mastered his hard work test in 6: 4, 3: 6, 6: 3, 6: 4 against the Argentinian Etcheverry on Wednesday, the Hamburg player is again among the top four, which is what Paris is all about. Now there is hype about Zverev again. As in the previous year, when the 26-year-old played at eye level against record winner Rafael Nadal for a long time, until a momentous misstep stopped him abruptly and for months. “I’m happy to get through and be here again,” said Zverev after the match on the Philippe-Chatrier court.
Spectacle in the other semi-final
In the first week of the tournament, the Olympic champion felt extremely comfortable in the shadow of Djokovic and Alcaraz in particular, as he always emphasized: little attention did not mean less ambition for him, but less pressure from outside. After his hard-earned success against the tireless Etcheverry, Zverev has reached the semi-finals for the sixth time in a Grand Slam tournament, and for the third time in a row at the French Open. Boris Becker once needed his entire professional career to be in the last four three times in Paris.
The highest expectations are still not on Zverev’s shoulders. Until further notice, the highly anticipated spectacle of Paris is the semi-final between Serbian record Grand Slam winner and world number three Novak Djokovic and Spanish industry leader and US Open champion Carlos Alcaraz. Whichever of the two wins on Friday will go into the final as favorites two days later.
The winner of the other semi-final between Zverev and the Norwegian Casper Ruud, who defeated the Dane Holger Rune 6: 1, 6: 2, 3: 6, 6: 3 on Wednesday evening, is given fewer chances of winning the title. Alcaraz is currently too quick-witted and full of relish, Djokovic is too good at focusing in crucial phases of a match. Ruud had reached the final in Paris in 2022 and lost to record winner Rafael Nadal from Spain, who was injured this year.
Zverev couldn’t care less about betting odds and fortune-telling on his first day shift after three night sessions in a row. He had enough to do trying to crack the Etcheverry code. After three service games here and there, the Hamburger seemed to know well how he could stop the surprising advance of the unseeded Argentinian in Paris: become active on his own, surpass the force from there, maltreat the 23-year-old on his backhand side and then that exploit open field.
“An incredible player”
When Zverev took the serve from the Argentine to make it 5: 3, it worked well. The 6: 4 made Zverev the first player to win a set against Etcheverry in Paris. “He’s an incredible player” who reminds him of his Argentine compatriot Juan Martin del Potro, said Zverev after the match.
