STUTTGART, Germany (Reuters) -German top seed Alexander Zverev took out American third seed Ben Shelton with a 7-6(8) 7-6(1) victory in the semi-finals of the Stuttgart Open on Saturday to set up a showdown with Taylor Fritz.

Competing in Stuttgart for the first time since 2019, world no. 3 Alexander Zverev is through to his 39th ATP final. The home favorite faced newly-promoted top-10 player Ben Shelton in the semi-final.

Alexander Zverev's victory saw him reach his first Tour-level final on grass since 2017 after his win over Shelton, but he faces a tough test against Fritz on Sunday