Top seed Alexander Zverev defeated Australia’s Alex De Minaur 6-4, 6-4 on Thursday to roll into the Shanghai Masters semifinals.
Zverev will play Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the next round. Davidovich Fokina advanced when France’s Arthur Gea retired injured from their quarterfinal after 22 minutes.
Zverev, who will end the year at world number one, faced a test from the Australian’s speed in the first set. He hit a string of dazzling forehands to convert a break point in the fifth game.
Despite a double fault, the German saved three break points in a row to hold serve. He took the first set in the 10th game with a backhand at the net.
Zverev kept up the pressure in the second set. He set up another break point in the seventh game to go up 4-3 when De Minaur served into the net.
The 27-year-old Australian clung on, but Zverev clinched victory on the first match point.
"Very satisfied with my level," Zverev said after the match, adding that it was "a huge step up from the last couple matches." Zverev needed three sets to win his two previous matches.
In the other half of the draw, France’s Gea played the biggest match of his career before quitting his quarterfinal with muscle issues.
The 21-year-old took a medical timeout for work on his lower right side when he was down 1-4 in the first set. He returned to play but ended the match minutes later.
"I felt this morning, during a warm-up, pain in the psoas," he said, referring to a muscle in the lower back.
Gea received treatment and decided to step on court despite being unsure about his fitness. "I tried from the beginning, but it was not enough to play full and too dangerous for the end of the season," he said, adding that he was really sad but it was the best choice he could make.
