Zverev grinds out victory over Sinner to advance to Monte Carlo semis

Alexander Zverev prevailed against Jannik Sinner 5-7, 6-3, 7-6 (5) in a Monte Carlo Masters classic to reach the semifinals of the clay-court season opener on Friday in Monaco.

Sinner overcame an early break to win the first set, and Zverev repaid the favour in the second. Zverev fought back twice from a break down in the third set and had to force the quarter-final to a tiebreaker.

In a match with 10 service breaks, half of the tiebreaker points went against serve, and Zverev finally won after more than three hours when Sinner netted.

Second-seeded Zverev will meet defending champion Stefanos Tsitsipas in the semifinals on Saturday.

AN INCREDIBLE MATCH