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LONDON -- Is this the breakthrough we've been waiting for? On the eve of the ATP Finals, Alexander Zverev was asked what it would mean if he could win the season-ending title. "It would be great," he said. "Great for me and great for the next generation of tennis as well. We'll see how far I can go." On Sunday, in the cavernous surroundings of London's O2, Zverev has the chance to win the biggest title of his career when he plays world No. 1 Novak Djokovic in the final, thanks to the 21-year-old's impressive 7-5, 7-6 (5) win against Roger Federer in Saturday's semifinals. "So far this week, I've done everything to give myself the best chance to do well," Zverev said afterward. "I'm in the final, which I'm very happy about. I have another chance to play for a title. But this title is hardly a given. In fact, Zverev has a daunting foe to deal with in Djokovic (Sunday, 1 p.m. ET on ESPN2 & The ESPN App), who beat the German handily, 6-4, 6-1, in the group stages earlier in the week. Further, Djokovic is playing at a mind-boggling level. On Saturday, he demolished Kevin Anderson 6-2, 6-2. Djokovic has not been broken this week and has faced only two break points in this tournament. Still, Zverev has long been considered a coming force or the next big thing in tennis. But it's time to stop talking about him and his potential. He's here. No more baby steps. As Federer said Saturday, "He's a top-five player. There you go. He's got what it takes to win against anybody." Long before Zverev won his first title as a 19-year-old, in St Petersburg in 2016, the German was dubbed a man destined to be world No 1. That kind of pressure is not for everyone, but Zverev seems to enjoy the hype and revel in the expectations. Yes, his performances in Grand Slams might be lacking, with just one quarterfinal to his name, at the French Open this summer, but he won three ATP Tour titles in 2018, a pretty solid effort in a Djokovic-dominated season. Last year, Zverev was a five-time titleholder, an effort that propelled him into the top five for the first time.  Keep in mind, Grigor Dimitrov, who like Zverev was once considered the future of this sport, won the ATP Finals last year at the age of 26 but failed to build on his title this season. So even a Zverev win Sunday would hardly signal a changing of the guard, especially with Djokovic playing at the level he has in the past six months. But it would be a major statement. Zverev is not Dimitrov. Zverev has reached this stage much sooner and much more is expected of him in the coming years. "We have so many great players that are a little bit older now, that it's not easy to come through for the young generation," Zverev said after beating John Isner. "We really have to be better than the other guys to come through and to be ranked higher. Following a disappointing loss at Wimbledon, Zverev had enough. He hired Ivan Lendl as his coach before the US Open. "The reason I'm with him is to compete and win the biggest tournaments in the world," Zverev said at the time. It's been only three months since they paired up, but given Lendl's success with Andy Murray, Zverev is optimistic big things are in the offing. While Lendl's success with Murray included encouraging him to stand closer to the baseline, Zverev, at 6-foot-7, is quite a bit bigger than the Scot and has different tools to leverage. Against Federer, Zverev showed a willingness to attack, to take the game to his opponent and, on occasion, to move forward to the net, an area of the game he is yet to master. Zverev has also showed character. After losing to Djokovic in his second round-robin match, he bounced back to beat Isner to reach the semifinals, a performance that gave him the momentum he needed against Federer. In his postmatch on-court interview Saturday, Zverev responded well when a few members of the crowd booed him as he apologized for an incident late in the match. In the second-set tiebreaker, he stopped play as a ball boy dropped a ball and moved to retrieve it in his line of sight. That was a seminal point. When they replayed it, Zverev aced Federer as the match was coming to a close. But the way he coped with the controversy and how he spoke afterward showed an increasing maturity. He's going to need that maturity along with a go-for-broke attitude -- something Anderson did not have Saturday -- against Djokovic if he expects to hold the trophy. "Novak right now is the best player in the world," Zverev said. "It's very tough to beat him. He's barely lost a match in the last six months. He's playing amazing tennis. You have to play your best game to even have a chance. I hope I'll be able to do that tomorrow." Zverev has served superbly this week, with 42 aces overall, more than anyone else. Against Federer, he won 88 percent of points when he landed his first serve and 66 percent on second serve. Will it be enough? Maybe not. But as a fallen Federer said Saturday, "anything is possible."
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