De Minaur beats world No. 1 Zverev to reach Vienna Open final
Alex de Minaur defeated top seed Alexander Zverev in a dramatic three-set semi-final to set up a Vienna Open final against Carlos Alcaraz, a result that boosts his ATP Finals qualification hopes.
Alex de Minaur defeated world number one Alexander Zverev 6-4, 1-6, 7-6 (7-4) in the Vienna Open semi-finals. The Australian will face Spanish second seed Carlos Alcaraz in the final after he beat Daniil Medvedev 6-4, 7-6 (7-2) in the other last-four match.
The victory is one of De Minaur's biggest. He had never beaten Zverev in an individual tournament before, with his only prior wins coming in team and exhibition events. The match at the Wiener Stadthalle lasted two hours and 30 minutes. It was Zverev's first defeat since securing the men's world number one ranking, which he will officially hold next week.
De Minaur broke once to take the first set and served well. His level dipped in the second, which Zverev dominated 6-1. The decider was tense. At 5-6 in the second set, Zverev received a time violation from umpire Arnaud Gabas for excessive ball-bouncing, a decision Gabas reversed after Zverev protested vehemently.
The match moved to a tiebreak. De Minaur won the first three points with aggressive strokeplay and closed it out 7-4. He hit 25 winners in the match.
Alcaraz extends dominant streak
Carlos Alcaraz continued his formidable form by dismissing third seed Daniil Medvedev in straight sets. The 23-year-old's victory marks his 25th consecutive win at ATP 500 events. His last defeat at this level was to Holger Rune at the Barcelona Open in April 2025. This will be Alcaraz's fifth final of the season.
The final presents a daunting challenge for De Minaur. He has lost all six of his previous meetings with Alcaraz, winning only two sets in total. Their most recent encounter was at this year's Australian Open.
Race to Turin reshaped
De Minaur's run to the final has major implications for the Race to Turin, the qualifying path for the season-ending ATP Finals. The 27-year-old Australian, currently seeded fifth in Vienna, has leapfrogged Spain's Rafael Jodar and now sits among the top-eight provisional qualifiers. Victory in the final would see him rise from world number 10 to number 7.
| Player | Current Race Position | Age | 2024 Final Appearances |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alex de Minaur | Among top 8 | 27 | 4 |
| Carlos Alcaraz | Already qualified | 23 | 5 |
De Minaur described handling the pressure well. "I'm super proud, super stoked of how I handled the moment," he said. "I was very calm, even though I threw in a couple of doubles there."
The Australian, who won the Rotterdam Open in February, regrouped superbly in the high-quality decider against Zverev. He played with striking front-foot intensity that seemed to shock the new world number one. De Minaur will compete in the Vienna Open final against Alcaraz tomorrow at the Wiener Stadthalle.
