Novak Djokovic to face Carlos Alcaraz in Cincinnati Open final

World no. 2 Novak Djokovic will compete in his 57th Masters 1000 final in Cincinnati following a hard-fought triumph over Alexander Zverev. Novak prevailed over Alexander 7-6, 7-5 in two hours and four minutes, beating the German for the eighth time from 12 encounters.

They met for the first time since the 2021 ATP Finals, and Zverev gave everything to follow Djokovic’s pace. The German followed the Serb’s pace behind the first set but lost the ground on the second, losing serve two times from six chances offered to a two-time Cincinnati champion.

Novak defended three out of four break points and prevailed in the pivotal moments to emerge at the top and set the title clash versus Carlos Alcaraz! They fired 59 service winners and had the same number of winners from the field.

Djokovic stayed on 29 unforced errors, while Zverev counted 37. Novak had a slight edge in the shortest, mid-range and most extended exchanges, winning six points more than Alexander and moving into the title clash against world no.1.

The Serb held at 15 to emerge at the top and reach his 57th Masters 1000 final, the eighth in Cincinnati.

In the other semi-finals, World.no1 Carlos Alcaraz saved match point before going on to beat Poland’s Hubert Hurkacz 2-6 7-6 (7-4) 6-3 on Saturday night to reach the final.

Alcaraz’s victory over Hurkacz means he will be playing in his eighth final of 2023. He is also the youngest Cincinnati Open finalist since a 19-year-old Pete Sampras in 1991.