Jordan Thompson on cusp of tennis history after 'miracle' win over Alexander Zverev

Australia's Jordan Thompson has taken a massive step towards the first title of his tennis career after ousting World No.6 Alexander Zverev in the semi-finals of the ATP's Los Cabos Open. The eighth-seeded Aussie will face Norway's Casper Ruud in Sunday's final after overcoming Zverev in an epic three-set battle that lasted a staggering three hours and 42 minutes.

The epic 7-5 4-6 7-6 (7-2) triumph was Thompson's fourth win over a Top-10 player and his second against Zverev, whom he also downed in Tokyo last October. Thompson's run to the final also included a stunning fightback from 6-0 3-0 down in the quarter-final against American teenager Alex Michelsen.

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Thompson's superb run has seen the 29-year-old rise up to a career-high ranking of World No.36 in the live standings and victory in the final would see him pocket a cool $AUD1.3 million. Things didn't go all the Aussie's way in the first set against Zverev, with Thomson dropping his serve twice in the opening set, then breaking three times himself to take a dramatic first stanza in 76 minutes.

Zverev got the only break of the second set in the fifth game to push it to a deciding set in which neither player was willing to give an inch on their serve. A deciding tiebreak ensued in a fitting end to an absorbing contest but it was Thompson who reigned supreme after racing out to a 6-1 lead, before clinching it 7-2.

"I think it's just a miracle," Thompson said about his stunning run to the final in Mexico. "I never thought I'd be here. It was over three and a half hours. It was just a great match and I just competed until the end I really don't know what to say. I'm pretty tired."

Jordan Thompson to face Casper Ruud in final

The win saw Thompson book a spot in his third Tour-level final, where he will face fourth seed Ruud. The Norwegian downed Greek World No.10 Stefanos Tstisipas in the other semi-final after two tense sets. Ruud fought off five set points in the second stanza to advance to his 19th Tour-level final courtesy of the 6-4 7-6 (7-4) win.

Tsitsipas was bidding to successfully defend a title for the third time after back-to-back successes in Marseille (2019-20) and Monte Carlo (2022-23) but it was ultimately a sixth straight defeat for the Greek against a top-20 opponent. Ruud admitted he rode his luck against Tstisipas at times but was pleased with his performance nevertheless.

"It was a really close match, all in all, especially the second set," Ruud said. "I was fortunate to save a few set points there and hold him off. I was just a bit lucky, and in the tiebreak I played really well from the beginning, so I'm very happy with the win."

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