Humbert rallies to Paris final after 13th consecutive indoor win

Ugo Humbert is an ATP Masters 1000 finalist. The French star moved past Karen Khachanov 6-7(6), 6-4, 6-3 on home soil at the Rolex Paris Masters on Saturday to advance to his maiden final at Masters 1000 level.

The 26-year-old played explosive tennis in front of an electric crowd in Paris and capitalised on Khachanov’s physical limitations in the closing stages of the third set to become the fifth Frenchman to reach the title match at the indoor hard event.

"It is amazing to do it in Paris at my favourite tournament. It is a dream," Humbert said. "It was a little bit difficult compared to the previous matches. I felt a little more pressure and after the loss of the first set I tried to enjoy the moment and be with the crowd. I did very well and I am super proud."

There’s no place like home ??@HumbertUgo is through to his FIRST-EVER Masters 1000 final! #RolexParisMasters | @RolexPMasters pic.twitter.com/vKGJDD1Rn8

Humbert crushed the ball off both wings and soaked in the roars from the crowd to earn his 13th consecutive win on indoor hard courts in France. The 15th seed won the title in Metz last year and then triumphed indoors in Marseille in February.

Chasing his seventh tour-level title, Humbert will meet Alexander Zverev in the championship match on Sunday. Earlier this week, Humbert upset Carlos Alcaraz. The Frenchman, who hit 35 winners against Khachanov, is up four places to No. 14 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings and will rise to a career-high No. 11 on Monday if he wins the title.

Khachanov was competitive until 3-2 in the third set, when he received a medical timeout for a leg injury. The No. 21 player in the PIF ATP Rankings lost serve in the seventh game of the third set and was unable to move in the final two games of the two-hour, 48-minute match.

Humbert is the first Frenchman to reach the final in Paris since Jo-Wilfried Tsonga lost to Roger Federer in the 2011 title match. The last Frenchman to win the crown was Tsonga in 2008.

Humbert will aim to take his standout 6-1 record in finals into Sunday's meeting with Zverev. The lefty, who lost his first ATP Tour final in Tokyo last month to Arthur Fils, is level at 1-1 in his Lexus ATP Head2Head series with Zverev. Earlier this year Humbert lifted trophies in Dubai and Marseille, while Zverev clinched the crown at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Rome.

Khachanov is a former champion in Paris, having won the biggest title of his career in the French capital in 2018. The 28-year-old earned an impressive straight-sets win against Grigor Dimitrov in the quarter-finals but ran out of steam against Humbert.

Khachanov finishes his year holding a 37-22 record, lifting trophies in Doha and Almaty.

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