The Swiss Roger Federer, today became the first classified to the semifinals of the London Tennis Masters by defeating the German Alexander Zverev, in an entertaining generational duel between the oldest and youngest player in the tournament.
Six-time Masters champion, Federer beat the 20-year-old rookie 7-6 (8-6), 5-7 and 6-1 in two hours and 12 minutes of play to get into the top four of the year-end tournament. for the fourteenth time in fifteen participations.
Zverev, with a victory and a fall, will play his pass in the Boris Becker Group on Thursday against the American Jack Sock, who earlier beat Marin Cilic 5-7, 6-2 and 7-6 (7-4) after coming back from a 3-0 deficit in the third set. The nightly result was the elimination of the Croat, Federer’s rival in the closure of the area.
Tomorrow, in the Pete Sampras Group, the Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov will face the Belgian David Goffin, and the Spanish Pablo Carreño, who replaced his compatriot Rafael Nadal, the Austrian Dominic Thiem.
It was a good fight. I am happy to have been able to advance in this tough group and to be able to play the third game more calmly, “said Federer after his victory against Zverev, of whom he highlighted his enormous future.
«He is a great boy and a great player. He has a very exciting future ”, commented the Swiss, who assured not to remember how was his first experience in a Masters. “So long ago …” he said with a laugh. “I don’t think I qualified at 20 (as Zverev did). I was 21 in Shanghai (2002) and it was a dream come true.