Defending champion Nikoloz Basilashvili overcame second seed Alexander Zverev in the semi-finals of the Hamburg Open on Saturday in of the most hard-fought matches of the season.
Georgian fourth seed Basilashvili, 27, won 6-4, 4-6, 7-6 (7/5) after three gruelling hours on the clay in northern Germany.
Zverev dropped the first set but rallied to take the second set after a crucial break at the end. The world No 5 then trailed 3-1 in the third set before coming back to lead 5-4 and had two match points. But it was Basilashvili who prevailed and clinched his spot in the final again.
He will play unseeded Andrey Rublev, who stunned top seed Dominic Thiem in the quarters, for the title. Rublev beat Pablo Carreno Busta 4-6, 7-5, 6-1 in the other semi-final.
Home favourite Zverev’s loss comes a day after was revealed the German had split with his coach Ivan Lendl.
Lendl ended his spell working with Zverev on Friday just days after the 22-year-old complainedthat his coach spent more time talking about “golf and his dog” than tennis.
The youngster had won another tough three-set match in the quarter-finals, beating Filip Krajinovic 2-6, 7-5, 6-2.
