Paris Masters: Humbert continues run, beats Thompson to make first Masters 1000 semi-final
The Frenchman backed up his victory over Alcaraz to make first Masters 1000 semi-final
Ugo Humbert, Rolex Paris Masters 2024 | © Chryslène Caillaud / Panoramic
Frenchman Ugo Humbert, the No 15 seed, won against Australian Jordan Thompson 6-2, 7-6 (4) to reach the semi-finals of Paris Masters at the Accor Arena on Friday evening.
The result marks the Frenchman’s best ever result at Masters 1000 level, having made three quarter-finals previously, and, based on his form, he will be hard to stop.
Humbert was coming hot off a sensational upset of world No 2 Carlos Alcaraz in the third round, and in the first set vs Thompson, he made sure to continue such form. The Frenchman did not put a foot wrong on his own serve, winning 92 percent of points on his first serve, and not giving his opponent a single break point opportunity.
Thompson, meanwhile, was simply at the mercy of his opponent who rocketed countless returns hard into the corners, and was broken twice to lose the first set 6-2 in just 30 minutes.
A match of two halves
However, the second set was far more contested, with Thompson doing significantly better behind his serve than in the first set, and with Humbert’s adrenaline cooling a little. Neither managed to see a break point up until the business end of the set, where the Australian faced down two match points at 5-4 before going on to hold, and breaking Humbert for the first time in the match in the very next game.
At 6-5, and with Thompson serving for the first set, Humbert seemed to be struggling with foot discomfort, which received treatment during the changeover. At crunch time, the French crowd ensured that they would play their part to help their man back into the set – and boy did it work. The Frenchman broke back to love to force the set into a tiebreak.
In the tiebreak, points were following the server up until 3-3, where a mini-break went each way, before Humbert hit two winners at 5-4 and 6-4 to clinch the win in typical fashion, 7-6 in the second set.
Humbert: “go for it, and, if you miss, you miss, but no regrets”
After the victory against Thompson, Humbert said to the press:
“I’ve played a solid match from start to finish. I started well, being ultra aggressive. I felt that it was too quick for him; he served better in the second set, so I had fewer opportunities. I’ve felt a pain in the foot after I was broken, but he gave me some second serves after that and then I made great shots in the tiebreak, so I’m very proud of myself.”
I’m very proud of myself
Humbert, reflecting on the Thompson win
He also commented on his mindset when he was down a break in the second set, where the Australian served to take it to a deciding set, amidst Humbert’s foot pain:
“If there’s a third set, there’s a third set, that’s what I thought when I was broken. You have to accept it. But I felt focused no matter what. I keep in mind matches where I was too passive. Here I am in mode: ‘go for it, and, if you miss, you miss, but no regret’.”
Humbert, ranked No 18, will play the winner of the match between Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov, the No 8 seed, and Russian Karen Khachanov next.
Paris Masters 1000, other last eight results (Accor Arena, hard, EUR 5.950.575, most recent results first):
- Grigor Dimitrov vs. Karen Khachanov
- Holger Rune (13) beat Alex De Minaur (9): 6-4, 4-6, 7-5
- Alexander Zverev (3) beat Stefanos Tsitsipas (10): 7-5, 6-4
