Zverev Edges Tien on Serve to Reach Australian Open Semis
Under Melbourne’s closed roof, Alexander Zverev turned a tense quarterfinal into a serving masterclass, outlasting Learner Tien’s baseline precision to book his spot against Carlos Alcaraz.
In the sealed heat of Rod Laver Arena, Alexander Zverev bent but never broke against Learner Tien’s rising challenge. The German third seed, still chasing that elusive first major after last year’s Melbourne final, leaned on his booming serve to claim a 6-3, 6-7(5), 6-1, 7-6(3) victory in the Australian Open quarterfinals. Tien, the 20-year-old American seeded 25th, had stunned Daniil Medvedev in the previous round, but Zverev’s 24 aces and unyielding short rallies proved too much on this fast hard court.
Zverev dominated exchanges of 0-4 shots, taking 106 points to Tien’s 68, while saving all three break points he faced with unreturned serves. The crowd sensed the shift when Tien clawed back in the second set, but the German’s consistency kept the pressure off. He finished 2025 at No. 3 with just one title in Munich, a year he called unsatisfying, yet here he dismantled opponents like Francisco Cerundolo who had beaten him head-to-head last season.
“Learner from the baseline was playing unbelievable. I don’t think I’ve played anyone who plays that well from the baseline for a very long time,” Zverev said of the 20-year-old, drawing huge cheers from the crowd. “Without my [24] aces, I probably would not have won today. I’m obviously very happy with my serve, just generally happy to be back in the semis.”
Semi-final bound @AlexZverev defeats Tien to reach the final four in Melbourne for the fourth time.@AustralianOpen | #AO26 pic.twitter.com/3gBr9yFKI6
— ATP Tour (@atptour) January 27, 2026
Tiebreak tension tests resolve
Tien‘s patience shone in longer rallies, where he used width on crosscourt forehands to stretch the court and open angles for his precise backhands. Trailing 3-5 in the second-set tiebreak, he unleashed four straight points—a pair of slicing crosscourt forehands, a down-the-line backhand, and a drop shot that barely cleared the net—to steal the set and ignite the Rod Laver crowd. Zverev, drawing on mental work with his psychologist, steadied himself with deep returns that disrupted Tien’s rhythm, refusing to let the momentum slip away completely.
The extreme heat outside, pushing 40 degrees Celsius, turned the closed arena into a sweltering echo chamber, amplifying every thud of ball on string. Zverev countered Tien’s spin-heavy loops with flatter trajectories, mixing in slice approaches to force uncomfortable mid-court volleys from the American. This tactical pivot, honed after the set loss, set the stage for a dominant third frame where his inside-in forehands hammered baselines, racing to 6-1 and releasing the pent-up frustration of a disjointed previous season.
Serve surges through the fourth
In the fourth set, Tien’s defense forced yet another tiebreak, but Zverev built a commanding 6-0 lead with a one–two pattern: flat serves out wide followed by heavy topspin forehands inside-out that pulled his opponent off balance. A rare double fault at match point injected drama, echoing the German’s history of high-stakes wobbles, but he regrouped with an ace at 130 mph to seal it on January 27, 2026. The fist pump toward his box captured the relief, as @AlexZverev joined @AustralianOpen under #AO26 in celebrating his fourth semifinal appearance here.
Tien’s run, bettering his fourth-round exit from 2025, propels him to No. 24 in the live PIF ATP Rankings, a top-25 debut that hints at future threats with his rally control and redirection of pace. Zverev, now through to his 10th Grand Slam semifinal and first since last year’s Melbourne final, carries renewed conviction into Thursday’s clash with World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz. On these skidding Plexicushion courts, where pace rewards aggression, the German’s serve stands as his fortress against the Spaniard’s all-court variety, promising a semifinal fireworks display that could finally crack his major drought.
