2024 Rome Open Men’s Semi-Final Match Preview as Zverev and Tabilo collide for final spot

Alexander Zverev (No. 5) will face the surprising Alejandro Tabilo (No. 32) in the Rome Open semifinals. The German, the tournament champion in 2017, has a great chance of playing in a Masters 1000 final for the first time since the 2021 Madrid Open.

However, the Chilean has had dream weeks in Rome, reaching the semifinals of a tournament of this caliber for the first time in his career and has shown interesting weapons like his powerful serve and cold mentality in crucial moments, in addition to achieving the best victory of his career by defeating the world No. 1 Novak Djokovic along the way.

Zverev arrives as a big favorite

The German has a lot of experience in the final stages of these types of tournaments. In fact, he already has 17 semifinals in Masters 1000 tournaments and is in the semifinals of Rome for the fourth time, in addition to his 5 titles in Masters, the first of which was in the 2017 Rome Open.

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Zverev has advanced at a very high level and without conceding sets. He didn't come from the best clay swing, with early exits in the Monte-Carlo Masters, Munich Open, and Madrid Open, although in Rome, he seems to have found his best level on clay. Along the way, he defeated Aleksandar Vukic, Luciano Darderi, Nuno Borges, and Taylor Fritz , all in straight sets.

Zverev suffered a fall in the first set of the match against Fritz and required medical assistance for wrist pain, but it didn't hinder him from having a great performance where he didn't face any break points against. The German also only lost his serve once in the four matches he played.

The world No. 5 will have to handle the pressure of favoritism and find a way to break the Chilean's serve, who comes in with sky-high confidence. He has previous encounters with Tabilo.

Zverev is 10-6 in Masters 1000 semifinals

Tabilo arrives as the tournament revelation

Alejandro Tabilo has caused a surprise in the Rome Open, especially after a resonant victory over Serbian Novak Djokovic. The Chilean defeated the world No. 1 in the third round convincingly, without facing any break points against him, and is making history as the first Chilean in the semifinals of a Masters 1000 since Fernando Gonzalez in the 2009 Rome Open.

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Tabilo entered as the 29th seed and defeated Yannik Hanfmann, Novak Djokovic, Karen Khachanov, and Zhang Zhizhen along the way, all in straight sets. The left-hander had not yet had major incursions in tournaments of this importance, his best performance had been in the 2023 Indian Wells, where he fell in the fourth round.

At 26, he seems to have found his best level in 2024 after winning his first title at the ATP 250 ASB Classic. However, the Chilean had already had good results in challenger tournaments and comes with a great streak of 8 consecutive victories, considering that two weeks ago he was the champion of the Aix-en-Provence challenger in France.

The Chilean has already guaranteed entry into the top 25 for the first time in his career and a seeding position in the upcoming French Open.

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