Alejandro Davidovich Fokina comes from a set down to stun Alexander Zverev and reach the Shanghai final

Alejandro Davidovich Fokina is through to the final of the Shanghai Masters. The 25th seed came from a set down to beat top seed Alexander Zverev 5-7 6-4 6-3 on Saturday, reaching the second Masters 1000 final of his career.

Watch

Alejandro Davidovich Fokina vs Alexander Zverev Highlights | Shanghai 2026 Semi-Final — ATP Tour · YouTube, plays on click

From a set down

Zverev, who had already sealed the year-end No 1 ranking, took the opening set and closed it with an ace, one of 18 he served in the match. The Spaniard stayed with him: after Zverev saved two break points in the fourth game of the second set, Davidovich Fokina eventually broke and levelled the match 6-4.

The decider turned his way quickly. A two-handed backhand down the line gave him the break, and an ace put him 4-1 up, the Associated Press reported. Zverev saved two match points at 15-40 in the eighth game, but Davidovich Fokina converted his third when the German could not return a sliced serve.

The numbers behind the upset

According to the match statistics reported by Sunday Guardian Live, Davidovich Fokina hit 36 winners to Zverev's 28, won 85% of his first-serve points and 54% of the points on Zverev's second serve. He converted two of his six break points; Zverev converted one of three. The match lasted two hours and 30 minutes.

It is also a reversal of a one-sided rivalry: Zverev had won six of their seven previous meetings, according to the pre-match head-to-head figures.

Nine straight wins in China

The win extends a remarkable Asian swing. Davidovich Fokina won the ATP 250 title in Chengdu last month and has now won nine matches in a row in China. His only previous Masters 1000 final came at Monte Carlo in 2022, where he lost to Stefanos Tsitsipas. Victory on Sunday would give him a third title of the season, after Mallorca and Chengdu, and he is set to return to the top 15 when the rankings are updated on Monday.

Who he plays in the final

His opponent will be either Daniil Medvedev, the 2019 champion, or 20-year-old Rafael Jodar, who play the second semi-final later on Saturday — a match that also matters for the last places at the ATP Finals (see our Race to Turin explainer). A Jodar win would set up an all-Spanish Masters 1000 final. Follow it live on our tennis scores.