The beautiful story of Shintaro Mochizuki in Tokyo therefore ends in the semi-finals. The Japanese, 215th in the world, had been living a waking dream all week following his victory over the number 1 seed, the American Taylor Fritz. But the awakening was brutal against Karatsev, particularly imperious on serve (6 aces, 85% of points behind his first ball, no break point to defend). The Russian is therefore qualified for his first final of the season, where he will face Ben Shelton who will play the first final of his career.
Mochizuki hasn’t lost everything yet since he should climb to around 131st place next week. Likewise, he is positioned in 15th place in the Next Gen Race and is positioned for qualification for the Masters in the category.
