Reclamation projects rarely survive the wrecking-ball pressure of Grand Slam play.
Riding a refined serve, Alexander Zverev continues to raze this Australian Open field.
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In his 19th career major, Zverev powered into his first career Grand Slam semifinal with a 1-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 conquest of a weary Stan Wawrinka on Rod Laver Arena.
Prior to Melbourne, Zverev had posted one career Top 20 victory in a Grand Slam. This week, he's doubled that total dismissing 17th-seeded Andrey Rublev in the fourth round before dismantling the 15th-seeded Wawrinka for the third time in as many meetings.
Overshadowed by NextGen stars, including US Open finalist Daniil Medvedev and AO semifinalist Stefanos Tsitsipas, Zverev broke through a major barrier to make his first Grand Slam final four. He will face either world No. 1 Rafael Nadal or two-time Roland Garros runner-up Dominic Thiem for a place in the final.
"It feels awesome," Zverev told John McEnroe afterward. "I don't know what to say. I've done well in other tournaments. I've won Masters, I've won World Tour Finals, but I never could break that barrier in a Grand Slam.
"I'm happy to be in the semifinals. Stan played a great match, a great tourament, beating Daniil Medvedev in the last match in five sets. You guys cannot imagine what this means to me and I hope this will be the first of many."
The 22-year-old Zverev is the seventh man from Germany to reach a major semifinal and first since Tommy Haas did it at the 2009 Wimbledon.
It's been a remarkable turnaround for Zverev, who staggered through a winless AP Cup debut with his serve in tatters. Zverev served 80 percent, pumping 13 aces with just one double fault today. Overall, he has committed just 11 double faults in 16 sets after a horrific serving performance in ATP Cup.
How did he rebuild his serve so quickly?
"I worked very hard on it, I worked a lot on it," Zverev said. "I hope you can see it. In ATP Cup it was horrible, but this is a Grand Slam, this is where you're supposed to play your best tennis. I am doing that.
"I've been struggling not only with my serve, but with my forehand, my backhand, my volleys, my drop shot, my slice, my return, my waking up in the morning, my everything it's not only my serve."
Everything was out of sorts at the start today as Wawrinka blitzed out to a 5-0 lead before Zverev knew what hit him.
In a horrific start, Zverev shanked a forehand into the fourth row dropping serve again to fall into a 0-4 hole. Wawrinka slashed an ace wide closing a love hold for a 5-0 lead after 16 minutes.
The 2014 champion needed just 24 minutes to snatch a one-set lead and leave Zverev feeling more than a little unsettled.
"I was getting ready to talk to the press why I lost in straight sets to be honest," Zverev said. "And then kind of turned around and my energy picked up a little bit.
"Stan came out firing. I was not quite used to his ball because I always played at night, which was much colder and his ball was much quicker than the previous matches. I needed a set to get used to it. Thank God it all turned out well."
Photo credit: Mark Peterson/Corleve
Blown out in the opening set today, Zverev rode that battering-ram serve to take charge. Wawrinka, weary from his three hour, 24-minute comeback win over the fourth-seeded Medvedev, lacked the legs to really trouble Zverev over the final set and a half. Zverev raced out to a 4-0 lead in the fourth set and never looked back.
Fittingly, Zverev closed on a serve-and-volley play off a second serve.
The man who has resculpted his serve is helping rebuild Australia with each win. Zverev pledged AU$10,000 for every win he posts in Melbourne to the bushfire relief effort. He's already raised $50,000 for the cause and if he takes the title, he's vowed to donate the entire AU$4 million champion's check to bushfire relief.
Perhaps playing for a cause bigger than himself has helped inspire Zverev to this major breakthrough.
"It is still true," Zverev said. "Let's hope I can make it happen. I made the people of Australia a promise. I will keep that promise if it happens."