Shanghai semis: Zverev tops Berrettini; Tsitsipas can't stop Medvedev

For the first time since 1999 in Hamburg, two 24-and-under competitors will battle for a Masters 1000 title. Alexander Zverev and Daniil Medvedev are set to face each other on Sunday for the Shanghai crown.

Although double faulting to start the match, Zverev quickly held to begin his semifinal against Matteo Berrettini. The 22-year-old dominated the court, hitting each ball away from the Italian to post a 6-3, 6-4 victory.

It seems as if the tennis world has been slightly disappointed with Zverev’s performance in 2019, but the German is unveiling a new level of play as the year winds down. Zverev’s serve has a lot to do with his success these past couple of weeks. On Saturday, he posted 11 aces and an 81 percent first-serve percentage that proved to be too strong for Berrettini.

After claiming his first Top-10 win of the year against Roger Federer in the quarterfinal round, it seems the German is picking up momentum. Zverev holds a perfect 4-0 head-to-head record against Medvedev. However, Medvedev, who has shown consistent results and has won three titles this year, will be nothing short of a challenge.

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Ever since Daniil Medvedev became a member of the ATP’s Top 10 in late July, the Russian has more than lived up to the prominent position. The world No. 4 advanced to his sixth consecutive tour-level final, improving to 5-0 against Stefanos Tsitsipas by clinching the first semifinal at the Shanghai Rolex Masters, 7-6 (5), 7-5.

"I think it’s a great achievement. I’m proud of myself. Hopefully I can get the win tomorrow," Medvedev said in a post-match interview.

Tsitsipas held the only three break points in the opening set, but couldn’t capitalize with Medvedev serving at 4-4, 0-40. At 5-5 in the tiebreaker, Tsitsipas mistimed two shots in a row to ultimately drop the set. The Russian then broke in the third game of the second set by striking successive passing shot winners and looked primed to close out the match, only to get broken when serving for it at 5-4. He quickly brushed it off, breaking a frustrated Tsitsipas right back and shut the door his second time around.

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With the victory, Medvedev increased his 2019 tour-leading totals of match wins (58), hard-court victories (45), Masters 1000 wins (21) and finals reached (9). The 23-year-old is through to his third Masters 1000 championship match in a row, having finished runner-up to Rafael Nadal in Montreal and winning his biggest trophy to date in Cincinnati over David Goffin. He has won the last 16 sets he's played, dating back to his triumph in St. Petersburg last month.

In Sunday’s final, Medvedev will meet Zverev for their fifth career meeting, and both will look to improve their chances of qualifying for the Nitto ATP Finals.