PREVIEW Cincinnati Open ATP Semi-Finals: Top three in the world and a qualifier set to contest for Masters 1000 glory

The men's semi-finals are ready to go in Cincinnati, made up of the top three in the world, and a qualifier. In the run-up to the US Open, players want preparation to be perfect, and winning a Masters 1000 tournament is the perfect way to plunge into Flushing Meadows.

Jannik Sinner, Terence Atmane, Alexander Zverev, and Carlos Alcaraz compete in a stacked semi-final lineup, with a place in the final about to summon the victors.

As semi-finals go, on paper, this is as big of a mismatch as you can get. The world number one, reigning Wimbledon, Australian, and US Open champion Jannik Sinner, who has yet to lose a game on hardcourt this year, faces off against a sponsorless qualifier who has to buy his own clothes.

It has been the week of dreams for Atmane, who has beaten all the odds to propel himself into a Masters 1000 semi-final. Regularly playing on the Challenger Tour, this is a whole new ball game for the Frenchman, who has taken to it like a duck to water.He had previously qualified for the Canadian Open after progressing as a lucky loser, but was dumped out in the first round to American Emilio Nava in straight sets. He picked himself up and got past the Australian pair Omar Jasika and Li Tu to reach consecutive 1000 events.

He won his first game in straight sets over Yoshihito Nishioka before causing a huge upset against recent Wimbledon quarter-finalist Flavio Cobolli, coming out on top in a tense tiebreaker. He would proceed to knocking out young prodigy Joao Fonseca without any fuss beofre causing a seismic upset against last year's US Open finalist Taylor Fritz. He fell a set behind, but recouped the set disadvantage, serving out for a miraculous win. Following on from that, he would send world number nine Holger Rune tumbling out after a brilliant 6-2, 6-3 win.

He has taken down three seeds this tournament, including two top 10's, while rising a mind-blowing 67 places up to 69th in the world. Another win would see him in the Cincinnati final, but standing in his way is Sinner, who is looking imperious.

After a gut-wrenching Roland Garros defeat, he picked himself up and went on to taste success at Wimbledon. Tactically, the Italian skipped the Canadian Open, but proceeded to participate in Cincinnati, where he is looking to defend the title he won last year. Sinner dropped just two games in a 60-minute route of Colombian qualifier Daniel Elahi Galan. He then got past Gabriel Diallo and Adrian Mannarino with little fuss to set up a quarter-final with Felix Auger-Aliassime. In ominous fashion, Sinner brushed the former world number six aside with no hesitation to make it through to his eighth Masters 1000 semi-final.

The pair have unsurprisingly never faced each other on court, in a first meeting between the pair.

If the first semi-final looks one-sided, this one is the opposite. The world number two and three face off in what is made out to be a great game.

It is now three consecutive semi-final appearances for Zverev in Cincinnati, as he finally hopes to progress into his first Masters 1000 final since Paris at the end of last year, which he came out on top of against home favourite Ugo Humbert. The previous Australian Open finalist came out of Wimbledon in fury, losing in the first round of a tournament he has had little fortune in the past. He was one of the top players who participated in the Canadian Open in Toronto, but was upset in the semi-final against Russian Karen Khachanov.

It was his best Masters 1000 showing of the year, but he strived for more. He defeated Americans Nishesh Basavareddy and Brandon Nakashima before coming up against a familiar foe in Khachanov. Fortunately for Zverev, the Canadian Open runner-up was forced to retire with Zverev in a commanding lead. He would then face off against Ben Shelton, who tasted glory in Toronto. The American would run out of steam, as Zverev cruised to a 6-2, 6-2 win.

This has set up a semi-final against five-time Grand Slam champion Alcaraz, with the Spaniard's only 1000 final loss coming in Cincinnati to Novak Djokovic in 2023. Since failing to defend his Wimbledon title, Alcaraz took a break from the sport, citing fatigue. He returned to action in the second round in a three-set win over Damir Dzumhur. He followed that up with straight set triumphs over Hamad Medjedovic and Luca Nardi, before being entangled in a tense quarter-final against Andrey Rublev. Despite being broken when serving for the match, the Spaniard broke back late on to just pip the Russian at the post and send him through to the last four.

The pair have yet to meet in 2025, with Zverev currently holding the edge over Alcaraz. He defeated him in straight sets at last year's ATP Tour finals to send his opponent out. A small piece of revenge after he was clawed back from 2-1 up in the Roland Garros final. Despite that, the German leads the head-to-head 6-5, adding more spice to what is already a red-hot game to be played.