TORONTO (AFP) – Karen Khachanov rallied from 3-1 down in the final set tiebreaker to defeat top seed Alexander Zverev 6-3, 4-6, 7-6 (7/4) on Wednesday to reach the final of the ATP Toronto Masters.
The 11th seed from Russia, who had lost two previous semi-finals in Canada, will play his 11th career ATP final against either Taylor Fritz or Ben Shelton, who met later in an all-America semi-final.
The Fritz-Shelton match was paused before the start due to a problem with the electronic linecalling system which now controls all aspects of matches.
The pair were sent off court with no immediate indication as to when they could return to start play.
Khachanov saved a match point as he levelled the deciding set at 6-6, with world number three Zverev hammering a backhand into the top tape of the net.
The German committed 44 unforced errors in the nearly three-hour defeat while Khachanov had 29 winners and 34 uforced errors.
"I had to work out this match, dig deep and try my best," Khachanov said. "It was very demanding physically and mentally.
"We've had a lot of matches and I'm happy to beat him after losing some easy ones," addd Khachanov. "Today was a tough one - I was match point down.
"I'm just happy things went on my side at the end."
Khachanov said it got tense at the end.
"When you reach the final tiebreak, you have to play your best. You can't waste time and energy with negative thoughts or you won't succeed. You never know what will happen but you have to give it a try."
Khachanov will be playing his first final of the season after semi-final defeats in Barcelona and Halle.
He took control of the opening set with a break in the fourth game and held onto his margin as he ran his lead out to 5-2.
Khachanov needed three set points a game later to prevail and in the second set Zverev held his nerve as he struggled to start his fightback, finally sweeping the last eight points of the set to level the match.
OSAKA BOOKS TITLE CLASH WITH CANADIAN TEEN MBOKO
Four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka and Canadian teen sensation Victoria Mboko booked a championship showdown with gritty semi-final wins on Wednesday in the WTA Canadian Open.
Canadian Victoria Mboko plays a forehand on the way to a semi-final victory over Kazakhstan's Elena Rybakina in the semi-finals of the WTA Canadian Open in Montreal.
Japan's Osaka, chasing her first tour-level title since th 2021 Australian Open, saved a pair of set points in the second-set tiebreaker to polish off a 6-2, 7-6 (9/7) victory over Denmark's Clara Tauson -- who was coming off victories over Wimbledon champion Iga Swiatek and Australian Open winner Madison Keys.
Mboko saved a match point in a thrilling 1-6, 7-5, 7-6 (7/4) victory over former Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina.
The 18-year-old wild card fed off the energy of the crowd, crediting ecstatic supporters with carrying her through after a tumble left her with a sore right wrist in the third set of her first tour-level semi-final.
Mboko, who ousted top-seeded French Open champion Coco Gauff in the fourth round, didn't let it stop her.
After going down an early break in the third set she refused to go quietly, loading up on her forehand fending off a match point as she broke Rybakina in the 10th game to level the set.
A couple of untimely double faults helped ninth-seeded Rybakina break back for a 6-5 lead, but the ninth seed from Kazakhstan was broken at love in the next game, setting the stage for tiebreaker drama.
Japan's Naomi Osaka celebrates a victory against Clara Tauson of Denmark in the semi-finals of the WTA Canadian Open in Montreal.
"After I had that fall I wasn't in the greatest spirits, but I'm happy that I kept my composure and I was kind of patient in the right moments," said Mboko, who won the last three points of a decider she called "stressful".
"Anything can happen," an exhausted Mboko beamed as the crowd's cheers rained down on her.
"Unfortunately I fell, but I had everyone supporting me and pushing me."
Mboko started the season ranked outside the top 300 but had worked her way up to 85th coming into the week by grinding away in lower-level tournaments.
She is assured of breaking into the top 40 no matter the result against Osaka, a former world number one who has struggled to find consistency since returning from maternity leave in 2024.
She has looked re-energized this week after a coaching shakeup and rolled through the first set against Tauson.
But Tauson twice regained a break in the second set as she pushed it to the tiebreaker where she had chances to level the match after taking a 6-4 lead.
Unable to convert her set points, the Dane saved one match point to make it 7-7, but Osaka won the next two to seal the victory and reach her first final in a WTA 1000 level event since Miami in 2022.