MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — No. 2 seed Alexander Zverev reached the Australian Open quarterfinals for the fourth time by beating No. 14 Ugo Humbert 6-1, 2-6, 6-3, 6-2 with the help of 19 aces and a 43-23 advantage in total winners on Sunday night.
Next up for two-time major runner-up Zverev will be a matchup Tuesday against 12th-seeded American Tommy Paul, who ended Alejandro Davidovich Fokina’s run of comebacks and reached his third Grand Slam quarterfinal with a 6-1, 6-1, 6-1 victory earlier.
Zverev did not have much of a chance to get ready before heading to Australia: He sat out the United Cup team competition because of an arm injury.
“A week ago, I was very unsure of my level. I was very unsure of my tennis,” the 27-year-old German said. “Couldn't really play a lot of sets in practice. Couldn't really prepare the way I wanted to.”
Paul needed less than 1 1/2 hours on Sunday to finish off a diminished opponent. The 66th-ranked Davidovich Fokina had won his last two matches despite dropping the first two sets in both.
“What he did is unreal the past couple matches. ... To do it twice in a row is amazing,” Paul said.
But Paul won nearly twice as many points as his Spanish rival, 85 to 43, and will be well-rested heading into the showdown with Zverev.
“This week, I did something a little different, where I haven’t practiced on the days in between my matches at all. Like, I haven’t even stepped on the court, just ’cause I started with a five-setter, and my body was a little tired. Every match has gotten a little shorter since then,” said Paul, who was born in New Jersey and grew up in North Carolina.
“I mean, my body feels great right now. Especially after the match today, it was a pretty short one,” Paul said. “It’s helpful (for) going deep into tournaments.”
His best showing at any Slam was getting to the semifinals at the Australian Open in 2023. He will try to repeat that by getting past Zverev, who lost in the finals of the 2020 U.S. Open and the 2024 French Open.
A year ago, Zverev exited in the semifinals at Melbourne Park for the second time.
Paul was one of four American men to reach the fourth round in Australia this year. No. 21 Ben Shelton, qualifier Learner Tien and Alex Michelsen will try to join him in the quarterfinals when they play fourth-round matches on Monday.
Paul has won both matches he and Zverev have played against each other, but the most recent was in 2022.
“I've got to be at my best,” Zverev said. “I've got to play the way I did the first week — hopefully a little bit better.”
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