Alexander Zverev powered past Diego Schwartzman 6-4 6-2 to reach the quarter-finals in Paris-Bercy as John Isner’s London hopes are in the hands of other players.
The German broke Schwartzman three times as he booked his place in the last eight of Paris in 1 hour and 21 minutes.
It will be Zverev’s 12th quarter-final of the season and will face Karen Khachanov tomorrow in a rematch of their Roland Garros epic.
The Russian defeated John Isner 6-4 6-7(9) 7-6(8) to set up the contest with Zverev. The loss for Isner means that his chances of reaching the ATP World Tour Finals depend on two withdrawals.
A fast start was needed for the world number five and that’s exactly what he did as a break in the third game sealed the first break of the match.
Despite Zverev’s power, Schwartzman provided some power of his own as he moved his higher ranked opponent all over the court.
The Argentine even shared a mid-match laugh with Zverev after he encouraged the Parisian crowd to cheer after a rare ace to his name.
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As well as laughs, the diminutive Argentine provided with a serious threat as he created a break point opportunity in the tenth game. However the German remained compose to take the opening set in 40 minutes.
The second set saw Zverev capitalise on his momentum as he moved into another gear providing the crowd with some sensational power.
Another two breaks sealed the deal for the fourth seed as he moved into the last eight ending the world number 19’s season.
It was a good effort from Schwartzman, who will end the year at 17 in the world, a season-ending high. However its Zverev who builds more momentum towards the ATP Finals and will be in the quarter-finals tomorrow.
The 21 year-old will now face Russian Karen Khachanov who battled past big-serving John Isner in just under two and a half hours.
After wasting match point opportunities in the second set, a backhand pass sealed Khachanov’s victory as he made sure that he would extend his milestone season.
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The win means Zverev will face Khachanov in a Roland Garros rematch where the German won in five sets, coming back from 2 sets to 1 down.
As for Isner, his loss now means that he can only make the ATP Finals if Juan Martin Del Potro and Rafael Nadal both withdraw from the tournament. Should one of those players withdraw then Marin Cilic, Dominic Thiem and Kei Nishikori will complete the London line-up.
