\n<\/p>\n
Repeatedly exposed on the forehand side, Zverev surrendered his first break of the match to an exquisite backhand passing shot on the run as Davidovich Fokina took the semi-final to a deciding set.<\/p>\n
Zverev was broken to trail 2-0 in the third set and could not recover control of the tie as the 25th seed advanced to his first ATP Masters 1000 final since 2022.<\/p>\n
Having failed to replicate the performance which earned him a straight-set win over Alex de Minaur in the quarter-final, Zverev said he has struggled since his fourth-round win over Alexander Bublik went to a third-set tie-break. <\/p>\n
“First, I’m not a robot, I’m a human being, I get tired,” Zverev said. “After the US Open, I had one day off in total. I think I played a lot of tennis, which is very, very positive because that means I played well.<\/p>\n
“I think even here I had tough matches. I personally feel like I was quite flat since the Bublik match, because I was losing energy. <\/p>\n
“I played a phenomenal match against Alex de Minaur, but today I was flat. Even in the first set, even though I won the set, I was flatter, I was not reacting so well. I was returning quite badly. <\/p>\n
“We’re all human beings, even the best players in the world.”<\/p>\n
His semi-final defeat is a disappointing exception to a brilliant season for Zverev, who claimed the first Grand Slam title of his career at the French Open in June before winning a second at the US Open in September. <\/p>\n
Davidovich Fokina will face fellow Spaniard Rafael Jodar in the final on Sunday.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n