Halle Westfalen (Germany) (AFP)
Ugo Humbert, Premiere!
The French (31st worldwide) qualified on Saturday for his first final of an ATP 500 tournament by beating the Canadian Félix Auger-Aliassime (21st worldwide) 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (7/5) in semi-final on the grass in Halle (Germany).
Humbert was able to resist Auger-Aliassime's return in the second set and his perseverance in the third to win after the suspense in a decisive game, after 2 h 33 min of play.
The French left-hander took revenge on the 20-year-old Canadian who beat him in the quarter-finals in Stuttgart last Friday after two hotly contested tie-breaks.
Already winner in 2020 in Antwerp and Auckland, Humbert, 22, will try to win a third title in three finals on Sunday.
But after having overcome Zverev (6th) in the second round and Auger-Aliassime on Saturday, it is an even bigger piece that awaits him in the person of Andrey Rublev, world No.7.
The Russian, winner a little earlier from Georgian Nicoloz Basilashvili (30th) 6-1, 3-6, 6-3, will take part in the 12th final of his career, at 23 years old.
This year, Rublev already won in Rotterdam in March, and only failed in the Monte Carlo Masters 1000 final a month later against Greece's Stefanos Tsitsipas.
© 2021 AFP