Hurkacz moves past Zverev to reach Halle final

pFormer champion a href='https://www.atptour.com/en/players/hubert-hurkacz/hb71/overview'Hubert Hurkacz/a moved to within one win of clinching his second title at the a href='https://www.atptour.com/en/tournaments/halle/500/overview'Terra Wortmann Open/a on Saturday when he overcame World No. 4 a href='https://www.atptour.com/en/players/alexander-zverev/z355/overview'Alexander Zverev/a 7-6(2), 6-4./p

pThe fifth-seeded Pole produced an impressive serving display in his semi-final clash against Zverev, firing 17 aces and saving all four break points he faced to earn his fifth Top 10 grass-court win./p

p"It needed to be really good," Hurkacz said. "He is such a good competitor and is playing good tennis, reaching the final at the French [a href='https://www.atptour.com/en/tournaments/roland-garros/520/overview'Roland Garros/a] and playing at a really high level./p

p"I am really confident on my serve. I am serving really good. There were some moments but I managed to believe in my game and hit some good serves and good shots, so I stayed pretty calm."/p

pWith his one-hour, 33-minute triumph in Halle, Hurkacz improved to 1-3 in his Lexus ATP Head2Head series with Zverev. Into his 11th tour-level final, the 27-year-old will aim to clinch his ninth ATP Tour title when he faces top seed a href='https://www.atptour.com/en/players/jannik-sinner/s0ag/overview'Jannik Sinner/a on Sunday./p

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pHurkacz has often produced his best level on grass, winning the title at the ATP 500 event in 2022. The 2021 a href='https://www.atptour.com/en/tournaments/wimbledon/540/overview'Wimbledon/a semi-finalist is up two spots to No. 7 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings and will move to a career high on Monday./p

p"I really love grass," Hurkacz said. "The surface suites my game and the atmosphere here, having the full crowd is incredible. It brings so much joy to the players."/p

pGermany’s Zverev advanced to the title match on home soil in Halle in 2016 and 2017 but was unable to find a way past Hurkacz, who won 81 per cent (43/56) of his first-serve points according to ATP Infosys Stats. The two-time a href='https://www.atptour.com/en/tournaments/nitto-atp-finals/605/overview'Nitto ATP Finals/a champion leaves the event holding a 37-11 record on the season./p

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