Dominic Thiem Beats Alexander Zverev to Advance to 2019 ATP Final

Dominic Thiem defeated Alexander Zverev in the last four of the Nitto ATP Finals on Saturday to set up a showdown with Stefanos Tsitsipas in London.

The 26-year-old prevailed 7-5, 6-3 against the defending champion and will take his place in the final on Sunday at the O2.

Tsitsipas beat Roger Federer in straight sets in the first semi-final earlier in the day.

Zverev never settled to the task in the capital and relinquished his chances of retaining his title after an uneven performance.

The two players matched each other for most of the opening set, but Thiem appeared sharper during the longer rallies.

Thiem was controlled as he fended off the champion's serving, and the Austrian won the opening set with a last-gasp opportunity at 6-5 up to gain a precious advantage.

It was just the fourth break point created during the set, which was evidence of how dominant each player was on his serve and how tightly matched they were.

Zverev failed to recover from that crushing moment, and the energy and motivation began to quickly drain from his display.

Thiem has proved his ability at closing out matches this season, and his superior ball striking forced his opponent on to the back foot.

The writing was on the wall when Thiem instigated a break of serve to make it 4-2 in the second, and the world No. 5 sensed victory was close.

Zverev had little to offer in the final exchanges, and Thiem made no mistakes as he closed out the win.