Zverev beats De Minaur to reach Shanghai semifinals

Alexander Zverev defeated Alex de Minaur 6-4, 6-4 in their Shanghai Masters quarterfinal on Thursday, October 15, advancing to the semifinals. He will face Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, who progressed after Arthur Gea retired from their quarterfinal with an injury while trailing 1-4 in the first set. Zverev, the tournament’s top seed, broke De Minaur in the fifth game of the opening set and saved three break points to hold serve. He took the set with a backhand at the net. In the second, Zverev secured another break in the seventh game and converted his first match point to close out the win. After the match, Zverev said he was very satisfied with his level and described the performance as a major improvement on his previous two matches, both of which had gone to three sets. The supplied match report described him as guaranteed to finish the year as world No. 1, following Carlos Alcaraz’s earlier exit in Shanghai. Gea’s retirement sent Davidovich Fokina into the last four without completing their quarterfinal. Gea took a medical timeout after feeling pain in his psoas during a morning warm-up, according to his account.