Zverev Breaks New Ground in Toronto National Bank Open

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Alexander Zverev famously won his second ATP Masters 1000 crown at the 2017 National Bank Open presented by Rogers in Montreal, defeating all-time great Roger Federer in the final.

But in his three previous appearances in Toronto, the three-time Grand Slam finalist had never gotten past the quarter-finals.

On Monday evening at Sobeys Stadium, Zverev cleared that hurdle. In a battle of former champions, the No. 1-seeded German ended the title defence of No. 18-seeded Australian Alexei Popyrin, 6-7(8), 6-4, 6-3, to advance to his 21st Masters 1000 semifinal and his 75th tour-level semifinal. Among the current crop of active players, only Novak Djokovic has more ATP Tour semifinal appearances.

For a place in Thursday’s championship match, Zverev will face off against No. 11 seed Karen Khachanov, who — just a few minutes shy of midnight — edged out rising No. 26-seeded American Alex Michelsen in two tight sets.

“Today was definitely the first time I actually felt the ball well on the racquet,” Zverev said in his post-match press conference. “I know that the conditions can fit me very well. … It's a fast court, the balls are fast. But I need to get used to it. I need to get the rhythm with these balls. So, I'm happy that I'm slowly starting to do that, hopefully. If I continue doing that, in the semifinals maybe even play a bit better, I have confidence in what's going to happen this week.”

Heading into his title defence at this year’s National Bank Open, Popyrin had barely won back-to-back matches all year. But on the fast hard courts in Canada, the Australian began to feel right at home all over again, knocking out former World No. 1 (and 2021 Toronto champion) Daniil Medvedev and former World No. 4 Holger Rune en route to setting up this quarter-final clash with Zverev. To his credit, Popyrin matched Zverev shot-for-shot in the first set, refusing to give the German any real looks at breaking his serve. In the topsy-turvy tiebreak, Popyrin saved two set points and then hit a miraculous pickup volley that clipped the net and dribbled over to secure the opening set.

After losing the set, Zverev launched a tennis ball into the upper deck and received a code violation for ball abuse. But in the same circumstances a few years ago, he stresses, he would have smashed a racquet. He has no intention of doing that anymore. “It was necessary to get [that frustration] out somehow, because it was a set full of opportunities and a lot of unlucky moments also on my side, especially the set point,” he said with a wry smile. “The [net] cord was extremely unlucky. Yeah, I just had to let it out and move on.”

Zverev moved on quickly, breaking Popyrin’s serve in the second game of the second set. And while Popyrin was able to take advantage of a sloppy game to get back on serve, the top seed steadied the ship by reeling off four games in a row from 4-all in the second set. Zverev didn’t face another break point for the rest of the match, wrapping up the hard-fought victory in two hours and 41 minutes.

“I found my return position on the second serve. I feel like in the first set I was still searching for it. I was maybe a bit deeper in the court, but I was hitting the ball a lot harder from that position, and then moving forward and kind of taking the game into my own hands, which worked,” Zverev said of the adjustments he made between the first and final two sets. “But, generally speaking, I don't think the first set was bad; I think it was quite [a] high level of tennis from both of us. I knew if I continued playing that way and I adjust a few things, I'm going to get my chances. I did that today, and obviously satisfied with the outcome.”

Speaking to the media after his loss, Popyrin was understandably disappointed with the result, but he was able to pinpoint what he wished he could have done differently on the big points.

“I knew my tactics going into the match, and I thought I executed them pretty well throughout most of the match,” he said. “But once he gets in the rhythm, he's one of the better players in the world. For me, [my game plan] was just to try and not give him the rhythm. I did a little bit, but I gave him too much rhythm towards the end of the match.”
“In the third set, I think it was the battle of the fittest. He came out serving bombs and I didn't really have much chance on his serve,” the Aussie added. “So, yeah, [the loss] was tough to take. I tried my best to claw myself back into the third set. Overall, my level is there. I haven't felt like this all year, which is nice, so I feel like I'm slowly starting to build something.”

In a post-match interview, Zverev sung Popyrin’s praises, essentially saying that the Australian, competing at the level he did this week in Toronto, would be a force to be reckoned with.

“He feels very comfortable here in Canada, so he needs to analyze what it is and why that is,” Zverev said of Popyrin. “If he can get that same level and that same quality of tennis to the rest of the tour, he can be a Top-10, Top-8 player, fighting to qualify for [the ATP Finals in] Turin. Because he showed that this week. He beat Medvedev, he beat Holger Rune, he beat so many great players. Last year he won the tournament. So there is something here in Canada that he finds that brings out the best in him. If he can analyze it and take that to the rest of the year, he has a massive game, he can fight for big things.”

When asked about Zverev’s comments, Popyrin quipped with a smile, “I appreciate the comments, obviously. I think it's always nice to be feared on tour.”

Popyrin, for his part, is already looking forward to returning to Canada next year. But he is hoping to be able to compete at a high level at events outside of just the Great White North, particularly as he turns his attention to the start of the U.S. Open at the end of this month.

“Obviously, my game revolves around my serve and forehand. I want to hit my spots on my serve. I want to be aggressive with my forehand wing. I felt like I hit my backhand this week the best I hit in my career,” Popyrin said. “We've worked a lot on my backhand over the course of the year, and I think it's really coming along. I think in today's match I maybe wasn't aggressive enough off it, but that will just come with experience and confidence. Look, I'm feeling good, I think my level's on the up, and hopefully it just continues that way.”

The ATP's best return to Toronto this summer for the National Bank Open presented by Rogers July 26 to Aug. 7, 2025 at Sobeys Stadium. 2025 Tickets are on sale. Get your tickets today!

Feature Photo : Peter Power