Paris SF previews and predictions: Zverev vs. Rune, Humbert vs. Khachanov

Alexander Zverev has become the title favorite at the Paris Masters, but two former champions stand in his way–including Holger Rune on Saturday. The other semifinal pits 2018 winner Karen Khachanov against Ugo Humbert.

(13) Holger Rune vs. (3) Alexander Zverev

Zverev and Rune will be facing each other for the fourth time in their careers when they collide in the semifinals of the Rolex Paris Masters on Saturday. The head-to-head series stands at 2-1 in favor of Zverev, who has prevailed twice in 2024; 4-6, 6-1, 5-7, 7-6(2), 6-2 at the French Open and 6-3, 7-6(5) at the Montreal Masters. Rune’s lone victory has come on the red clay of Munich in 2022, when he got the job done 6-3, 6-2.

The 13th-ranked Dane has kept himself in distant Nitto ATP Finals contention with wins this week over Matteo Arnaldi, Alexander Bublik, Arthur Cazaux, and Alex de Minaur. Zverev continued his charge for the year-end No. 2 ranking by getting the best of Tallon Griekspoor, Arthur Fils, and Stefanos Tsitsipas. Rune has never been uncompetitive in this matchup, so this should be a fun one between a former Paris champion (Rune, 2022) and a former runner-up (Zverev, 2020). A slight edge goes to the third-ranked German, who has 34 aces and six double-faults through three matches after serving at 70 percent against Tsitsipas. 

Pick: Zverev in 3

Karen Khachanov vs. (15) Ugo Humbert

Humbert has shown flashes of brilliance throughout his career, but never has he been hotter than he is in Paris. Thriving on his favorite surface (indoor hard courts) and benefiting from the fact that Court Central playing incredibly fast, the 18th-ranked Frenchman has treated the home crowd to defeats of Brandon Nakashima, Marcos Giron, Carlos Alcaraz, and Jordan Thompson.

Standing in Humbert’s way of the final is Khachanov, who won their only previous encounter 7-6(4), 4-6, 6-3 at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. The 21st-ranked Russian is also in unbelievable form right now, having won 12 of his last 13 matches. He triumphed at the Almaty tournament, finished runner-up in Vienna, and has advanced in Paris by taking out Christopher O’Connell, Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, Alexei Popyrin, and Grigor Dimitrov. Since outlasting O’Connell in a third-set tiebreaker and dropping his opening set against Mpetshi Perricard, Khachanov has reeled off six sets in a row while getting pushed to a ‘breaker just once by Popyrin. It’s also worth noting that the 28-year-old is a former Paris champion (2018), so he loves this event. Combine all of that with a minor foot issue for Humbert in the quarterfinals and the left-hander’s run might come to an end on Saturday.

Pick: Khachanov in 3