Alexander Zverev Vs Carlos Alcaraz, Cincinnati Open: Spaniard Sets Up Final Showdown With Jannik Sinner

Carlos Alcaraz will face Jannik Sinner in yet another showpiece after overcoming an ailing Alexander Zverev in the Cincinnati Open semi-final on Saturday.

The Spaniard is through to his seventh consecutive tour-level final after he earned a 6-4 6-3 win in one hour and 45 minutes.

Alcaraz was forced to dig deep early on as he went 1-2, 0-40 down in the opening set, but he staved off three break points to hold onto his serve.

He then went a break up three games later as part of a three-game winning streak, and Zverev was unable to find his way back as Alcaraz converted his second set point.

The German, who had treatment in the quarter-final against Ben Shelton after seeming to suffer with his breathing, began to struggle in the second set, needing another medical time out at 2-1 after the pair had traded breaks.

Though he held on to make it 3-2, Zverev failed to win another point in the match, with Alcaraz cruising through the final four games to book his place in the showpiece.

He will now face Sinner in a fourth final in 2025, having also faced off in Rome, Roland-Garros and Wimbledon.

"It's never easy playing against someone that you know is not feeling 100%," Alcaraz said after the match.

"It's even tougher when it comes from Sascha, such a great player, such a great person off the court. We have a really good relationship.

"We started the match really good, playing good rallies, a good level of tennis. But then all of a sudden, he started to feel bad. And then my focus; I was thinking about how he's feeling, besides focusing on myself and playing good tennis. It was a really difficult situation for me, and I just wish him all the best."

Data Debrief: Alcaraz on familiar ground

Alcaraz (22 years 94 days) is the youngest player to reach three consecutive finals at ATP Masters 1000 events entered since Novak Djokovic (21y 341d), between Miami and Rome in 2009.

He is through to his ninth such final overall (7-1), and his first on hard courts since his Indian Wells triumph last year. At ATP Masters 1000 events, he has won his last 16 matches in a row, having claimed the titles in Monte-Carlo and Rome.

He also claimed a 25th career ATP top-five win – since the rankings were first published in 1973, only Roger Federer (36) has claimed 25 wins in fewer matches than Alcaraz (37).