(Reuters) – World number four Alexander Zverev has booked a spot in the ATP Finals in London for the first time after progressing to the China Open semi-finals.
The 20-year-old has won five titles this year including the Italian Open and the Rogers Cup and joins world number one Rafa Nadal and Swiss Roger Federer in the finals, with five spots yet to be decided.
“I think it’s great for any player to qualify for a prestigious event that we have in London,” Zverev told the ATP website.
“It shows that you’ve been one of the best players, not only for one or two weeks in a year, but you’ve been one of the best players for the whole year.”
Zverev is the youngest player to progress to the finals since Juan Martin del Potro in 2008 and is the first German singles player to qualify since Rainer Schuettler in 2003.
The German, second seed in Beijing, beat Russian teenager Andrey Rublev 6-2 6-3 in the quarter-finals and will face Australian eighth seed Nick Kyrgios in the semi-finals later on Saturday.
(Reporting by Aditi Prakash in Bengaluru, editing by Ed Osmond)
