When serenity makes talent shine

Capable of the best and the worst; the light and the darkness, the sky and the earth, that is Alejandro Davidovich. The Spanish tennis player, accustomed to fighting against his own nightmares, finds himself in a moment of balance. Everything is in its place. A cool head and hot tennis. And this mental and tennis state translates to a final in the Masters 1000 in Shanghai after coming back against Alexander Zverev 5-7, 6-4, 6-3. Now, he awaits Daniil Medvedev or a dream Spanish final against Rafael Jódar.

An exciting Masters 1000 semifinal loomed between the future world number one and one of the fittest players on the Asian tour. A Zverev on autopilot and a fired-up Davidovich faced off for the seventh time (6-1 for the German) with the goal of securing one of the two spots in the great final of Shanghai.

This was Davidovich's hard-fought victory over Zverev in the Shanghai semifinals

And the equality is at its peak at the start of the contest. Both find themselves secure and firm with their serves, winning their service games with apparent ease. There’s not much rhythm, but when there's some exchanges, the intensity of the shots is frantic. Both know how to hurt the opponent and look for weaknesses, but there are hardly any opportunities to break because the serves dominate.

The first set reaches a critical moment (5-5) and the prevailing feeling in Shanghai is that the set will be decided in a tie break. However, the only double fault from Davidovich is accompanied by an unforced error and then a parallel backhand from Zverev, who manages to secure the first break of the match just when he needed it most. This is the nature of tightly contested matches; three silly errors can condemn you. And that’s what happens to the Spaniard, who plays a great first set, but three unforced errors cost him and the German takes the set (7-5).

The second set has the same tones as the first; however, Zverev trips up on his forehand in a game and Davidovich gets the first break point of the entire match, but a great serve from the Hamburg player halts the attempt. Still, the Malagueño shows more bite on the return, does not give up, and earns another break point, which this time slips away after a great rally.

The Spaniard misses a golden opportunity that cannot be wasted against a server like Zverev, especially seeing the upcoming games where serves will again dictate the outcome, but he starts to generate doubts for the new world number one.

FOKI IS A SHANGHAI FINALIST 😤 @alexdavidovich1 cooks a comeback 5-7 6-4 6-3 to beat Zverev for a spot in the final! #RolexShanghaiMasters https://t.co/x6Ny68YlKl

— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) October 17, 2026

The match enters the decisive moment again and any small mistake can lead to victory for Zverev or a second set for Davidovich. This time the Spaniard does not flinch; instead, he steps up. He no longer falters and seals the second set (6-4), where he appeared to have a bit more spark than the German, and the final set will determine the first finalist of Shanghai.

The feeling is that the Malagueño is gaining momentum, while the Hamburg player is declining and heavily relying on his serve. His groundstrokes no longer inflict damage, his movements are more limited, and he needs to find solutions if he doesn’t want to see victory slip away. However, he seems to have disconnected, as he concedes his serve in the first game with a double fault. If Davidovich doesn’t rush and stays calm, he is just one step away from the final.

The Spaniard defends his lead perfectly. He gives no chance for Zverev to recover the break and the games keep passing. He faces the hardest part in a match: closing it out. But Davidovich’s calm is above any fear or doubt, even above the world number one.

After many ups and downs, endless storms, and endless mazes, Alejandro Davidovich has found his place. The brightest and the darkest, a bit of each to find the necessary balance. That which allows him to defeat Alexander Zverev 5-7, 6-4, 6-2 to reach the final of the Masters 1000 in Shanghai.
 

This is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Cuando la serenidad hace brillar el talento