Alexander Zverev immediately apologised to the Paris Masters crowd after beating home favourite Ugo Humbert to lift the trophy.
Humbert was looking to become the first home champion in Bercy since 2001 and was the first Frenchman to reach the final in 13 years.
But he couldn’t get over the final hurdle as Zverev raced through the championship match, winning 6-2 6-2 in 75 minutes.
Humbert was hoping to complete a fairytale in the final year of the Paris Masters in Bercy. The final Masters 1000 tournament of the year will be moving across the French capital to the La Defense Arena from 2025.
The French No. 1 reached the final with impressive wins over world No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz and former champion Karen Khachanov. But he was no match for 2020 runner-up Zverev, who lifted his seventh Masters 1000 title on Sunday.
The third seed knew the Parisian fans had been hoping to see a home hero lift the trophy. As he stepped up to the microphone to give his victory speech, he said: “Well. First of all, sorry.”
Laughing, Zverev then turned his attention to his opponent. “To start I want to congratulate Ugo on an incredible week,” he continued.
“Incredible player, all the hard work that he’s doing off the court, you can see it. The results are there, you’re playing unbelouavle tennis.
“I told you at the net, if you continue like this, this is not the last chance you’re going to get and I’m sure you’ll be able to lift trophies like this very soon.”
After congratulating Humbert’s team and thanking his own camp, Zverev addressed the crowd again, admitting he knew they wanted him to lose. He added: “You guys are definitely very, very special. I have to say that.
“It’s so fun to play in Roland Garros and it’s so fun to play here. I know that 99.99 per cent of the people wanted a different result today but still, I enjoyed the week here. I enjoy the two weeks in Roland Garros too.”
Humbert also addressed the Accor Arena in French. “Congratulations to Sascha for a great week and a great season. Good luck for you and your team,” he started.
“Thanks to the whole tournament and the organisation. Very happy to have been in the final. For the whole week, my family, my friends, my team. Incredible moments. This is why I do it. Thank you very much.
“And thank you, of course, to the public for supporting me all through the week. You made me live a lot of emotions throughout the week. Thanks for pushing me, for backing me, for supporting me.”
Humbert will now head to next week’s ATP 250 in Metz to end his season while Zverev will be in action at the ATP Finals.
