By Richard Pagliaro | @Tennis_Now | Thursday, March 28, 2024
No. 4-seeded Alexander Zverev swept Fabian Marozsan 6-3, 7-5 securing a spot in his second Miami Open semifinal.
Photo credit: Miami Open/Hard Rock Stadium
When he isn’t hammering the fuzzy yellow ball, Alexander Zverev is following the bouncing ball as an avid Miami Heat fan.
Merging profession and passion, Zverev showing high hops landing in the Miami Open semifinals today.
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In their maiden meeting, Zverev swept Fabian Marozsan 6-3, 7-5 securing a spot in his second Miami semifinal.
“I thought my opponent played extremely well, extremely aggressive super super fast from both sides,” Zverev, who hit 20 winners against 10 errors, told Tennis Channel’s Prakash Amritraj afterward. “There’s a reason his record was 4-1 vs. Top 10 players because he rushes us. He’s playing unbelievable tennis. I think he’s going to rise up the rankings quickly.
“When I rushed him in the first set especially in the beginning maybe he gives you a little bit more. But he found his rhythm. You gotta hold on and take your chances. He gave me that chance [at 5-6] and I took it.”
It’s the third semifinal of the season for Zverev, who knocked off Wimbledon winner Carlos Alcaraz en route to the Australian Open semifinals last January.
The fourth-seeded German could meet Alcaraz for the third time this season in the semifinals if the top-seeded Spaniard stops 11th-seede Grigor Dimitrov in tonight’s final quarterfinal. Zverev has won five of nine meetings vs. two-time Grand Slam champion Alcaraz.
If Alcaraz prevails tonight, it will mark the first time in Miami history all four top seeds—second-seeded Jannik Sinner faces third-seeded Daniil Medvedev in tomorrow’s other semifinal—reached the Miami Open final four. It would be the first time all four top seeds reached a Masters 1000 semifinal since the 2021 Cincinnati.
“Well, actually the matches that I won, they were tough battles at times, you know, and great-level tennis. The matches that he won against me, he absolutely destroyed me," Zverev said of Alcaraz. "So, it's sometimes that. I think sometimes we play at the later stages of the tournaments where we're both playing extremely well already, and it's kind of like back-and-forth and I came out on top a few times....
"So I know that I have to play my best tennis to even go into this kind of fight, go into this battle with him. Because if you're not feeling the ball or if you're feeling like you're put under pressure from the beginning, most of the time it's been a very quick match."
Rocker and recreational tennis player Jon Bon Jovi was in the crowd as Zverev turned tennis court into trampoline soaring for a smash that helped him hold for a 5-4 second-set lead.
A five-time Masters champion, Zverev used his heavy serve and biting backhand to take charge today.
The 2018 Miami finalist served 74 percent, pumped six aces with no double faults, permitted just nine points on first serve and saved both break points he faced. Marozsan hit nine more winners than Zverev (29 to 20), but also committed 13 more errors as the German played cleaner combinations.
Serving into the sun, Marozsan ran into trouble trying to combat the German’s crosscourt backhand patterns. Marozsan dodged three break points, but on the fourth break point he put a drop shot into net as Zverev broke for 2-1 after nine minutes.
On a steamy, 85-degree day, Zverev confirmed the break at 15 for 3-1.
Piercing opposing sidelines with drives, Zverev denied a break point in the sixth game to hold for 4-2.
The Zverev two-handed backhand return wreaked damage in the ninth game. Marozsan double-faulted away a second break and the set as Zverev closed it in 39 minutes.
Deadlocked at 2-all, Zverev ripped a 126 mph serve out wide to erase another break point. Hit with a time violation warning, Zverev yelled “I’m waiting for the wind [to die down].” After that brief tiff, Zverev restored order holding for 3-2.
Serving at 4-all, Zverev Anticipating the dropper, Zverev answered with a stretch reply to test Marozsan to deuce in the 12th game.
When Marozsan scattered a backhand, Zverev had match point after one hour, 37 minutes of play.
Measuring a second serve, Zverev scalded backhand return winner down the line securing his semifinal spot with a strong victory.