Zverev bounces back from fall to beat Fritz and reach semis

ROME: Alexander Zverev suffered a nasty fall before rallying to beat Taylor Fritz 6-4 6-3 in the quarter-finals of the Italian Open on Wednesday.

The third-seeded German fell on his stomach and suffered cuts to his wrist and finger after hitting a backhand return in the third game. He was treated on court before play resumed after a short delay and he returned to attack Fritz’s serve, converting three of his five break-point chances and hitting 20 winners en route to a 90-minute victory.

“I still have a little bit of pain, so once the adrenaline settles I’m going to check out tomorrow what it is. But definitely happy with the win,” said Zverev. “Taylor has been one of the best players on clay this year. To have a win like that is great for me, especially after the fall,” he added. Zverev will meet 29th seed Chilean Alejandro Tabilo in the last four after he beat Zhang Zhizhen 6-3 6-4.