Zverev hits ATP Masters 1000 milestone in Paris, De Minaur on cusp of Turin cut

With his Wednesday win at the Rolex Paris Masters, Alexander Zverev became the fourth player to reach the last 16 at all nine ATP Masters 1000s in one season in series history. The third seed hit the milestone with a 7-6(2), 6-3 victory against Tallon Griekspoor in his opening match, his fifth consecutive Lexus ATP Head2Head win against the Dutchman and his fourth this season.

Zverev, who won his sixth ATP Masters 1000 title in Rome this May, is now 19-1 in opening matches on the year. The German fought off a break point in each of his first two service games against Griekspoor, and later fought off a set point on serve at 4-5, but hit his stride from there to pull away. Beginning with that set-point save, he won 16 straight points on serve to close out the opening set and start fast in the second.

"The last few matches that we played always went the distance, 7-6 in the fifth [at Roland Garros], 7-6 in the third [in Shanghai] as well," said Zverev, who has won six tie-breaks in his past five matches against Dutchman. "So I'm happy that it didn't go that far today. I felt for the first match it was pretty good from my end.

"Very fast court. I think one of the fastest courts I've ever played on. I had to find my rhythm in the beginning but happy to come through in the end," said the German, who will hope for more success in similar indoor conditions at the Nitto ATP Finals next month. "Once I find my rhythm I love fast courts because it fits my game."

Players to reach R16 at all 9 Masters 1000s

Zverev capitalised on his lone break point of the match to move ahead 4-2 in the second — an advantage that he coolly saw home behind his 86 per cent first-serve win rate. Both players won more than 80 per cent of their first-serve points in the match, according to Infosys ATP Stats.

The No. 3 in the PIF ATP Rankings will next meet #NextGenATP Frenchman Arthur Fils for a place in the quarter-finals. The 20-year-old beat Marin Cilic and Jan-Lennard Struff to pick up his first main-draw wins at the Rolex Paris Masters. Zverev and Fils have split two previous Lexus ATP Head2Head meetings this season, with Zverev winning on the grass of Halle and Fils taking a final matchup on the Hamburg clay. Both matches went three sets.

Alex de Minaur beat Miomir Kecmanovic 6-4, 7-6(5) Wednesday to bolster his bid to qualify for his Nitto ATP Finals debut. Hoping to become the first Australian to play in the Nitto ATP Finals since Lleyton Hewitt in 2004, the 25-year-old is now one win away from passing Andrey Rublev for the all-important eighth place in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin — though Grigor Dimitrov and Stefanos Tsitsipas are also within striking distance behind De Minaur. Rublev was knocked out of Paris by Francisco Cerundolo on Tuesday, 7-6(6), 7-6(5).

De Minaur is through to the last 16 in Paris for the fifth time in six appearances, with his best result a quarter-final showing in 2023. He will next meet Jack Draper as he bids to return to the quarters.

Draper upset fifth seed Taylor Fritz 7-6(6), 4-6, 6-4 to extend his winning streak to seven matches dating back to the start of his Vienna title run. Both players converted on two break points, but the Briton created 10 break chances to Fritz's two and hit 14 aces to the American's eight.

"I know if I want to be a consistent top player I'm going to have to back up match after match against the top players in the world," said Draper, who beat Lorenzo Musetti and Karen Khachanov to win his second tour-level title last week in Vienna. "The toughest part [in Paris] has been adjusting to the conditions. It's a lot different, a lot faster, which has made it tougher off the ground. I didn't play my best but I'm proud of how I competed and problem solved."

Turning up the ?

Draper battles through a three-set thriller to defeat Fritz in Paris ?@rolexpmasters | #RolexParisMasters pic.twitter.com/CH606cztM4

The 22-year-old still has an outside chance to qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals. He could move within 135 points of the eighth-placed Rublev in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin by claiming the Paris title, with further points on offer in Metz and Belgrade next week.

The Day 3 action in Paris was rounded out by Arthur Cazaux’s upset of another powerful American, Ben Shelton. Cazaux, who entered the draw as a lucky loser after the withdrawal of World No. 1 Jannik Sinner due to illness, notched a 6-3, 7-6(3) victory to the delight of his home fans.

With his second win against a Top 20 opponent in six attempts, Cazaux booked his spot in the third round at a Masters 1000 for the first time. He will next face 2022 Paris champion Holger Rune, who earlier defeated Alexander Bublik 6-4, 6-2.

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