France’s Ugo Humbert advanced to the first ATP Masters 1000 final of his career on Saturday on home soil at the Rolex Paris Masters with a 6-7(6), 6-4, 6-3 win over former champion Karen Khachanov.
Humbert, who will face No. 3 seed Alexander Zverev in Sunday’s final, is the first Frenchman to make the singles final at the ATP Masters 1000 event since Jo-Wilfried Tsonga more than a decade ago. The former world No. 5 won the title in 2008, and was also a finalist in 2011.
The 26-year-old left-hander, winner of six previous ATP titles, said to break new ground at his “favorite event” is a “dream.” Humbert won another event in France, a 250 in Metz, in February, and also triumphed at the 500-level event in Dubai a month later, but had never previously been past the quarterfinals at a 1000-level event.
This week, Humbert stunned world No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz in the fourth round, and defeated unseeded Aussie Jordan Thompson to finally reach the semifinals at a 1000-level event. But against Khachanov, who won the Paris Masters title in 2018, Humbert had to rally from a set behind for the first time in five matches played. His comeback was aided by both a partisan Accor Arena crowd that vocally and vociferously supported him throughout the two hours and 48 minutes on court, and Khachanov fading physically.
The world No. 21, a winner in Almaty two weeks ago and a finalist in Vienna last week, took a medical timeout for a leg injury at 3-2 in the final set, was broken two games later, and saw his movement greatly hampered in the match’s closing stages.
