Mpetshi Perricard was excellent throughout, mixing precision-guided power with intelligent and well-executed forays to the net. All this was given room to flourish off a foundation of rock-solid serving that completely shut Rune out, with the world No 14 unable to generate a single break point on his opponent’s serve.
That being said, it was a high-quality contest with both players underlining their statuses as some of the brightest young talents on Tour.
The first set was dominated by serve, as neither player could find the decisive break across twelve breathless games. But the Frenchman held his resolve commendably in the resulting tiebreak, ultimately just edging a very close set 8-6 in the breaker.
A single break for Mpetshi Perricard in the opening game of the second stanza proved crucial, as Rune could not make forays into his opponent’s iron-clad service games.
The rest of the contest stayed competitive, but the world No 50 played well above his ranking right to the end, holding serve when it mattered most to clinch the biggest win of his career on his second match point.
mpetshi perricard continues to impress as shelton awaits in final
“How do I stay so calm? It’s am impression, because I don’t show it. But inside I am overcome by a lot of emotions in tense or complicated moments,” the Frenchman said in his an on-court interview.
“But I’ve managed to control it well since the beginning of the week. Holger had a very good match, he raised his level well, he bothered me with his return. But I managed to serve well.”
Rune, runner-up here two years ago during a breakout run across the European indoor autumn stretch, could not return to the final in Basel as he came up against an opponent performing highly in all areas.
A heartening run for the Dane comes to an end in the semi-finals, and he will next turn his attention to the final Masters event of the year in Paris next week.
With today’s performance, Mpetshi Perricard has emphatically re-emphasised the threat he poses to the rest of the Tour.
It was a wonderful showing, full of both guile and grit to reach a second ATP final of the season.
He will take on Ben Shelton next in what is a captivating prospect. The American will be aiming for his third ATP title, while Mpetshi Perricard looking to take his second.
Based on their performances throughout the week, this year’s Swiss Indoors showpiece looks set to be the first iteration of a match-up we are likely to see in countless finals long into the future.