Dominic Thiem continued his formidable march to the summit of men’s tennis in a season in which he has truly come of age, outperforming his good friend Alexander Zverev 7-5, 6-3 to reach the title match of the ATP Finals.

He will face Stefanos Tsitsipas as the next generation settles at the top of the sport.

“This is just a big, big dream coming true for me,” said Thiem. “It’s one of the best tournaments all year, one of the most prestigious and I’m getting the chance to play the finals tomorrow. It’s unreal.”

Thiem had arrived in the semi-final after one of the greatest two-match stretches of his life, becoming the first player to beat Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic in the same group at the ATP Finals. Conventional wisdom said indoor courts were simply not compatible with his elaborate groundstrokes that could be rushed on faster surfaces, but throughout the week he has vaporised such ideas with the force of a bullet forehand.

Thiem struggled in the early exchanges as Zverev consistently rained down bombs over 140mph. The Austrian saved two break points early in the first set and he initially struggled with his first serve percentage, but he soon began to impose his vicious groundstrokes.

Across the net, the German’s composure crumbled as he failed to pressure Thiem’s vulnerable serve. The quickfire holds in the first set finally gave way as Zverev sprayed a flurry of errors and found himself facing two set points at 6-5. On the second attempt, the German double faulted. As he sat in his seat between the set he tossed his racket across the court in disgust.