PARIS (AP) — Alexander Zverev reached the Paris Masters final for the second time after beating former champion Holger Rune 6-3, 7-6 (4) on Saturday.

The 2020 finalist will next face 15th-seeded Frenchman Ugo Humbert, who beat 2018 champion Karen Khachanov 6-7 (6), 6-4, 6-3 to reach his first Masters final at age 26 years old.

Victory on Sunday would give Zverev a seventh Masters title and also move him past top-ranked Jannik Sinner for the most wins on the ATP Tour this year. They are tied at 65.

Despite a busy schedule – it was his 85th match this year – Zverev then went to practice. It’s a routine he’s doing to narrow the gap to four-time Grand Slam champion Carlos Alcaraz and Sinner, who has won two majors.

“It’s about improving certain things. I feel like Jannik and Carlos are doing some things better than me at the moment,” Zverev said. “I feel like they are so aggressive. I think tennis is going in that direction (and) I also want to improve in general for next year.

Even though Zverev will overtake Alcaraz to move into second place in the ATP rankings next week, he believes he still needs more to become a major winner like them.

“For me, Jannik had the best year this season, then Carlos had the second best year. He won two Grand Slams,” said Zverev, the Roland-Garros finalist. “I’m ahead of him in the rankings (soon) but he won Wimbledon and Roland Garros. These are two huge titles. So they are still the two best players in the world, in my opinion.

Rune saved a match point with a brilliant crosscourt forehand, but third-seeded Zverev kept his composure on the next ball with a crisp backhand volley to the net.

“I feel like I made it a little difficult for myself but he’s a champion. It’s probably his favorite tournament and venue,” the 27-year-old Zverev said. “I’m happy to play my second final here, I’m looking forward to it.”

Zverev was especially in control against Rune in their fourth career meeting and the first on indoor hard courts. He improved to 3-1 on aggregate against his rival, who won the 2022 Paris Masters by stunning Novak Djokovic in the final.

Rune saved a break point in his first service game as he struggled from the back of the court.

Zverev broke him in the fourth game when Rune’s two-handed backhand came out, and he held serve for a 4-1 lead in a commanding first set, winning it when his opponent came back long.

He broke the 13th-seeded Danish player to serve for the first time in the match at 5-4, but Rune fought back immediately.

A long 11th game saw both players miss chances and there was a sixth tie before Rune finally won it with a backhand volley to the net.

That was the end of his resistance and Zverev was calm in his next service game and in the tiebreaker.

The German, with a big serve, is aiming for his second title of the year and his 23rd in the general ranking.

Humbert is vying for his third title of 2024 and the seventh of his career.

His confidence was high after eliminating Alcaraz in the third round. But Humbert blew a 5-2 lead in the first set tiebreaker, with a double fault and two unforced errors.

In a tough match that lasted 2 hours and 46 minutes, Humbert received a time violation from referee Richard Haigh while serving for the second set, drawing boos from the home crowd.

Khachanov, 28, called on a trainer during the sixth game of the deciding set and had his right thigh massaged.

The Russian, a powerful hitter, seemed embarrassed afterwards.

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