Alexander Zverev moved into the semi-finals of the Paris Masters with a straight sets victory over Stefanos Tsitsipas at the Accor Arena.

Zverev, seeded third in the French capital, needed an hour and 44 minutes to eliminate Tsitsipas and close the gap on the Greek in the pair's head-to-head record, with world number 11 Tsitsipas led with 10:6.

However, Zverev, who is hoping for his first Paris Masters title after his 2020 final defeat against Daniil Medvedev, was in control here.

He prevailed 7:5 and 6:4 to secure his place in the last four, where he will either face Holger Rune, the 2022 champion.

The win meant Zverev became only the eighth player in history to reach 20 ATP Masters 1000 semi-finals, joining an exclusive club including players such as Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Andy Murray.

The German, currently ranked third in the world, was at his usual best from the back of the court, knocking down serves, facing just one break point throughout the match and dominating on both wings.

With the score at 6-5 in the first game, he earned the elusive first break of the game before firing a big serve into the net that Tsitsipas could only tuck into the net to secure the first set.

The highlight of his second break of serve when the score was 1-1 in the second set was a deft winner on the forehand line when he deftly steered the ball into the tram line and Tsitsipas stormed into the net to serve and volley.

Zverev produced three match points to seal the deal but only needed one as he fired a final decisive serve to move into the last four.

“I thought his entire game was at a very good level,” said Zverev. “He started hot and had some good chances to break me at the beginning. Maybe not in terms of points, but in terms of the game.”

“I got into the game, found my rhythm, felt more and more comfortable and am happy with the win.”

“I felt like I could go at it pretty hard today, and against him he's going to make you pay if you just push back.”

“He’s someone on the forehand side who can be so aggressive and move forward. I was happy to take that with me.”

The defeat for Tsitsipas means he is no longer in contention for the season-ending ATP World Tour Finals in Turin, which begin on November 10.

In the other quarterfinal, Holger Rune beat Alex de Minaur in three sets.

The Dane won 6:4, 4:6, 7:5 and prevailed over the Australian in an exciting match that included several long rallies, with Rune almost wasting a break advantage in the deciding set and moving into the quarter-finals.

“He played against me so much. He played every ball with quality, deep in the pitch and the pitch is pretty fast here,” said Rune.

“I had to adjust my game a little bit and it was a constant battle, but the way I handled the last few games was very good. I tried, I did it and I’m very happy.”

“Sascha (Zverev) and I had a great match in Paris where he did it in five minutes. I hit him once, the last time he hit me. He is one of the best players this year, so I have to be very well prepared and recover physically and build on the level of this game.”

The win maintains Rune's outward claim to a spot in Turin, but he will likely need to win the tournament to have a chance of qualifying for the season finale.

Elsewhere, Karen Khachanov broke a four-match losing streak against Grigor Dimitrov by beating the Bulgarian 6-2, 6-3 on Friday evening.

The defeat eliminates Dimitrov from the Nitto ATP Finals competition. The 33-year-old had to first beat Khachanov and then advance to the final to overtake eighth-placed De Minaur and secure a place in Turin.

Khachanov will face local hopeful Humbert, who beat Australia's Jordan Thompson 6-2, 7-6 (4) a day after beating world No. 2 Alcaraz.

It is Humbert's first Masters semi-final and the first time in seven years that a Frenchman has reached the quarter-finals in Paris.