Alexander Zverev downed Holger Rune at the Paris Masters to reach his first hard-court final of the season. (More Tennis News)
Zverev recovered from failing to serve out the match at 5-4 in the second set, resisting a late fightback from Rune to earn a 6-3 7-6 (7-4) victory in the French capital.
The German, who hit 25 winners and won 84% of his first-serve points, also climbed above Carlos Alcaraz in the ATP rankings after securing his 65th win of the season.
He is a former finalist in Paris, having lost in the title match in 2020 to Daniil Medvedev, but will be hoping to clinch a seventh ATP Masters 1000 crown this time around.
Zverev will face either home favourite Ugo Humbert or former champion Karen Khachanov in Sunday's showpiece.
No stopping the Zverev Express @AlexZverev advances into his 12th ATP Masters 1000 FINAL!!! #RolexParisMasters | @RolexPMasters pic.twitter.com/luYjPH9F3m
— ATP Tour (@atptour) November 2, 2024Data Debrief: Zverev one away
Zverev's triumph saw him reach a 12th ATP Masters final. Since the format's inception in 1990, the German surpassed Boris Becker (11) for the seventh-most in tournament history.
It was also his 65th win of the seasonfree slot machines, equalling Jannik Sinner (65) for the most ATP match victories of any player so far this year.