20:07
C. Ruud – A. Zverev 6:3, 0:1
Zverev drives Ruud far to the outside, but he counters with a flat slice. Zverev knows the right answer with the Inside In on the forehand and can set it to 30:30.
20:03
C. Ruud – A. Zverev 6:3, 0:1
Alexander Zverev seems to have quickly shaken off the lost first set. He only needs a little over a minute to serve and delivers his service without any problems.
19:58
C. Ruud – A. Zverev 6:3
Sentence number one goes to Casper Ruud! With a forehand error, Zverev gives up this round. Nevertheless, the last few minutes should give him courage. Recently, Zverev was a little braver and actually better in the game.
19:57
C. Ruud – A. Zverev 5:3
Great stop now from Ruud, who brings Zverev very far forward. The German can no longer place the ball cleanly. There is the set ball!
19:56
C. Ruud – A. Zverev 5:3
Ruud has to go over the second serve, but takes a lot of risks with his kick service and keeps the upper hand in rallies for a long time. Nevertheless, in the end, Zverev has a good chance of scoring the point here, but misplaces the forehand carelessly.
19:55
C. Ruud – A. Zverev 5:3
It’s 30:30 and the question is: Breakball or set ball? There is the breakball for Zverev, who takes the initiative first and puts good pressure on with the backhand. Ruud slips up and gives the break ball.
19:52
C. Ruud – A. Zverev 5:3
The decision in this first sentence has been adjourned! With a lot of effort, Zverev only gets his serve through and shortens it to 3: 5. Now, however, the 26-year-old needs the break!
19:50
C. Ruud – A. Zverev 5:2
Zverev goes to the net in front, but Ruud always knows an answer and has the first set ball after a strong passing ball. However, Zverev can equalize this with a service winner.
19:49
C. Ruud – A. Zverev 5:2
Zverev actually still seems a bit sluggish in his footwork. However, if he then unpacks such punches, then it almost doesn’t matter. With an incredible angle, the German fires a forehand cross across the net to 30:30 into the field.
19:44
C. Ruud – A. Zverev 5:2
Great rally by the two, which Zverev ultimately wins with a great backhand longline. The German gets applause from the fans. In the end it didn’t help much, because Ruud scored the remaining points in this service game with ease.
19:39
C. Ruud – A. Zverev 4:2
Above all, Zverev also needs free points with his own serve. The Hamburger finally manages to do that. The German makes it 4:2 without much difficulty.
19:39
C. Ruud – A. Zverev 4:1
Three winners, 12 unforced errors. These are Alexander Zverev’s current statistics after the first five games. So it’s going to be difficult against Casper Ruud, who really doesn’t play the stars from the sky, but acts much more consistently.
19:35
C. Ruud – A. Zverev 3:1
There it happened! Ruud has the breakball again and Zverev actually serves well. Ruud’s return is therefore a bit too short, but Zverev lacks the right timing. The ball flies far too far and so the German’s quick re-break is gone.
19:32
C. Ruud – A. Zverev 2:1
Although Zverev doesn’t risk too much, he has already produced some unnecessary mistakes. Nevertheless, he now manages to make his debut and prevent the break for the time being.
19:32
C. Ruud – A. Zverev 2:1
Zverev creates his serve again. The German does not manage to earn free points. After he managed the re-break himself, the Hamburger sees himself facing the breakballs again.
19:26
C. Ruud – A. Zverev 2:1
There’s the break! With his fifth break ball, Zverev takes the serve from the Norwegian. Again the German keeps his opponent on the backhand side and forces Ruud to make a mistake.
19:24
C. Ruud – A. Zverev 2:0
Zverev gets the break chance again, but does not get the return well into the field on the advantage side. Ruud can pull the plug on the German again in the fight for the break.
19:22
C. Ruud – A. Zverev 2:0
It goes much better when Zverev attacks Ruud’s backhand. Of course that’s not the all-purpose solution, but the German should always let that flow into the rallies.
19:20
C. Ruud – A. Zverev 2:0
For the time being there will be nothing with the break! Zverev even has the rally under control, but plays too much on Ruud’s forehand, who can take command and make a debut.
19:19
C. Ruud – A. Zverev 2:0
That would be very important for Zverev! The German gets a little braver and fights for two breakballs here!
19:16
C. Ruud – A. Zverev 2:0
Both get caught up in a forehand duel, which Ruud finally opens with the longline. The ball lands right in the corner. Zverev has no chance there.
19:16
C. Ruud – A. Zverev 1:0
There’s the early breakball! Zverev is not quite in the game yet, is still moving a bit sluggishly and therefore makes another mistake.
19:15
C. Ruud – A. Zverev 1:0
Of course, Zverev should and wanted to avoid that at all costs. Again and again he had problems with double faults in the past. The first of this game is already undermining him. 30:30!
19:14
C. Ruud – A. Zverev 1:0
Now Sascha Zverev is serving, who has to find his rhythm here first. The German now plays a little more carefully and doesn’t place the balls quite as much on the lines.
19:13
C. Ruud – A. Zverev 1:0
Also thanks to some mistakes by Alexander Zverev, Ruud gets through his service game here with zero.
19:11
C. Ruud – A. Zverev 0:0
Now it’s finally time to get into the game! Casper Ruud starts with his own serve and starts the match optimally.
19:01
The wait goes on
Apparently the preparations for the match are taking a little longer. The two players are not on the pitch yet, so the start will be delayed a bit.
18:26
Everything is done
In the end, the first semi-final went faster than expected. Novak Djokovic buys the final ticket for the seventh time. Alexander Zverev and Casper Ruud decide who meets the Serb. The game will probably start around 6:50 p.m.
18:08
Start is further delayed
Carlos Alcaraz seems to have gotten his cramps under control and can now at least finish the game. He is currently even holding up solidly, so that the start for Zverev and Ruud will certainly be further delayed. The game is not expected to start before 7 p.m.
17:50
Difficult preparation!
The first semi-final between Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic is still running on the chatrier. As the Spaniard is currently struggling with physical problems, the game could come to an abrupt end. But if Alcaraz can catch himself, it would take a while. For Zverev and Ruud, this certainly makes the preparation and timing of the warm-up more complicated.
17:48
Ruud wants to go to the final again!
For Casper Ruud, the tournament tree already held a difficult task in the quarter-finals. Ruud not only had the upper hand against youngster Holger Rune, who was seeded number six, he also dominated the game for long stretches at will. Even if the Norwegian had to give up a set, he made the other three sets impressively confidently. Ruud will be ready to make life difficult for Zverev and, like last year, to move into the final.
17:36
Zverev is “back”
“A year later I’m back,” wrote Alexander Zverev on social networks after reaching the semifinals. And he’s right, because we’ve seen the best Alexander Zverev in almost exactly 12 months. At that time, the Hamburger, also in the semifinals of the French Open, tore several ligaments in his ankle in a duel against Rafael Nadal and was then out for half a year. Since then, the German has been struggling to find his form, which he was only able to regain at Roland Garros. With great performances and a bit of luck (no opponent in the top ten yet), the 26-year-old made it into the semi-finals – and wants to take the next step there.
16:55
Good day!
Hello and welcome to the French Open 2023. Two exciting tournament weeks in the west of Paris are coming to an end. We are looking for the two men’s finalists this Friday. Alexander Zverev from Hamburg and Casper Ruud from Norway will be fighting for second place in the final at 5:30 p.m. at the earliest.