Fritz to play for ATP title in U.S. first since 2006

US Open runner-up Taylor Fritz reached another big final at the ATP Finals by beating Alexander Zverev 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (3) on Saturday.

Fritz became the first American finalist at the elite eight-man event since James Blake lost the 2006 final to Roger Federer. The last American to win the trophy was Pete Sampras in 1999.

“I trust my game and I trust my level, and I don’t feel nearly as uncomfortable in these situations anymore because I’ve been playing the top guys at big events a lot lately,” Fritz said. “I’m getting more comfortable in the moment. I’m really, really confident in my game.”

In Sunday’s final, Fritz will face top-ranked Jannik Sinner — the player he lost to in the US Open final — or Casper Ruud, who were playing later Saturday.

Sinner beat Fritz in straight sets in the group stage this week.

Fritz’s run in New York made him the first American man to reach a Grand Slam singles final in 15 years. He is playing at the ATP Finals for the second time. In his debut two years ago, he beat Rafael Nadal in his opener and made it to the semifinals, losing to Novak Djokovic.

“It’s awesome to come back and already go a step further,” Fritz said. “I’m all about always trying to do better than the year before.”

It was Fritz’s fourth consecutive victory over Zverev, who replaced Carlos Alcaraz at No. 2 in the rankings this week.

Fritz, who is No. 5, also beat Zverev at Wimbledon, the U.S. Open and the Laver Cup.

It was a matchup of big servers between the 6-foot-5 Fritz and the 6-6 Zverev. When Fritz broke for a 4-2 lead in the first set, it marked the first time that Zverev lost a service game in four matches in Turin.

Eventually, the match turned into a physical duel from the baseline. Fritz rallied from 0-40 and held his serve for 3-2 in the third set after a nine-minute game full of long rallies, winning one exchange that lasted 30 strokes.

Fritz was then under pressure one service game after another but somehow managed to keep holding. He got ahead early in the tiebreaker and finished Zverev off with an audacious inside-out forehand winner on his first match point.

Zverev, the ATP Finals champion in 2018 and 2021, entered the semifinals on an eight-match winning streak after taking the Paris Masters.