France's best tennis player Ugo Humbert emerged from the final at the Paris Masters targeting more shots at glory on the circuit's biggest stages despite a straight sets defeat to Alexander Zverev.
"I'm not surprised to see myself in a final," said the 26-year-old matter-of-factly just over an hour after Zverev deconstructed him 6-2, 6-2 on Sunday afternoon.
During the week at the Accor Arena in Bercy, south-eastern Paris, Humbert underlined his status as the country's number one talent with solid wins over lesser ranked adversaries Brandon Nakashima and Marcos Giron in the opening two rounds and the scalp of the world number two Carlos Alcaraz in the last-16.
The 15th seed accounted for Jordan Thompson in the quarter-final and the 2018 champion Karen Khachanov in the semis.
"I'm not shocked that I beat Carlos and then reached the final," added Humbert. "I've always felt myself capable of such things.
"I work seriously, I can construct my points and I have a solid game. I'm happy it was all on display this week at Bercy but I'm really not surprised to see myself at this level."
Rise
Humbert, who was born in Metz in eastern France in 1998, turned professional in 2016.
In January 2020, he won his first title on the senior circuit in Auckland, New Zealand. A second championship followed in October in Antwerp.
Four more trophies including two from ATP500 tournaments in Halle and Tokyo have been added.
A victory in Paris would have made him only the fourth Frenchman after Guy Forget, Sebastien Grosjean and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga to have triumphed at Bercy.
For the moment though, after his fifth trip to Bercy, he can savour the accolade of becoming the first Frenchman since Tsonga in 2014 in Toronto to have reached the final at a Masters 1000 event.
Conceived in 1990, the nine Masters tournaments are considered as the most prestigious on the circuit after the four Grand Slam championships in Melbourne, Paris, London and New York.
Progress
"I've really surpassed myself in all areas, whether physically or mentally," Humbert said.
"I've also beaten Alcaraz and those are the kind of things I need to hold on to. I've played at a high level which shows I'm on the right path.
"I just need to stay on it and I hope that it won't be long before I'll be winning these kind of tournaments."
Zverev, who claimed his seventh Masters title with the win, agreed.
"Ugo really does the work off the court," Zverev told the fans during his on-court interview after the match.
"And if he continues that way, it won't be long before he is lifting trophies like this."
Crowd pleasing compliments for the 15,000 partisans and Humbert's coaching team which include former players Jérémy Chardy and Fabrice Martin.
Praise
An hour or so after the triumph, Zverev resumed the paean.
"From the first moments of the match, I felt as if I was striking the ball well. When I have this feeling, I feel good on the court and confident, perhaps a little more aggressive than usual. It's important to feel this way when playing Ugo.
"He is one of the best players when he is attacking but he still has a little trouble when he has to defend.
"When I got him on the run, it was comfortable for me and not so good for him. I was feeling good from the back of the court and I think that was the key to the match."
It was all over in 74 chastening minutes for Humbert. "It's been a good week despite the defeat," Humbert reflected.
"I came to Bercy when I was a kid growing up and that made me want to become a tennis player. I'm really happy to have been in the final in Bercy. It will remain a wonderful memory."
The tournament will move to Paris La Défense Arena on the western fringes of the French capital from next year ending a 38-year association with the venue.
"I wanted to be really intensely involved in this very last Bercy," said Humbert. "And that's exactly what happened.
