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It took 44 weeks, but the ATP World Tour has its Cinderella story of the 2017 season. Armed with an arsenal of big backhands and plenty of grit and guile, Filip Krajinovic completed an improbable run to the Rolex Paris Masters final on Saturday, edging John Isner in a deciding tie-break. Another American, Jack Sock, awaits in the championship clash.

Krajinovic entered the week in Paris with just one match win at the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 level, but the Serbian mounted a stunning charge to reach his first final, notching a 6-4, 6-7(2), 7-6(5) victory over Isner. At No. 77 in the Emirates ATP Rankings, he is the lowest-ranked player to contest a Masters 1000 title match since World No. 191 Andrei Pavel in Paris in 2003. He is also the first qualifier to reach a final at the elite level since Jerzy Janowicz's magical final charge in the French capital in 2012.

"The emotions are amazing," said Krajinovic. "It was a tough mental match. He was serving really well, he was playing aggressive. I knew that that's going to happen. But when I served for the match, my hand was shaking. It was tough to control the emotions, but I knew I had to stay aggressive all the way to the end. I did it and it is the best day of my life.

"But the tournament is not over yet. I'll prepare for tomorrow and then we'll see. It's just another match and I'm playing against Jack Sock. I know him from juniors. He's a great player. I think it's going to be an interesting match. So I will give everything what I have to finish the year strong."

Krajinovic, who owns an ATP Challenger Tour leading five crowns and 47 match wins this year, is making a seamless transition back to the ATP World Tour following surgery to remove an extra bone in his wrist. The Rolex Paris Masters is just his second tour-level event of the season, having streaked to the titles at the Challenger stops in Rome and Almaty, Kazakhstan, just one month ago. Having started the year at No. 234 in the Emirates ATP Rankings, a candidate for Comeback Player of the Year in the 2017 ATP Awards presented by Moët & Chandon, he is projected to rise to at least a career-high No. 33 on Monday.

It marks the fourth time in five years that a Serbian will compete for the Paris crown, with Novak Djokovic having completed a three-peat from 2013-15. Having won six matches in eight days, Krajinovic is also the fourth qualifier to reach the championship in tournament history, joining Janowicz (2012), Radek Stepanek (2004) and Sergio Casal (1986).

A fresh Krajinovic showed no signs of rust following a quarter-final walkover over top seed Rafael Nadal (knee). He was on the front foot early and often, striking winners from both corners. With a game predicated on dogged defence and an attacking mentality, he would secure the opening break in the fifth game and reeled off 12 of 14 points to hold for 4-2.

Fewest Attempts To Reach Masters 1000 Final
Attempts
Player Tournament
Result
2 Jerzy Janowicz
2012 Paris
runner-up
5
Filip Krajinovic
2017 Paris
???
7
Richard Gasquet
2005 Hamburg
runner-up
9
Rafael Nadal
2005 Miami
runner-up
10 Novak Djokovic
2007 Indian Wells
runner-up

A labouring Isner struggled to find success in extended rallies and Krajinovic would take advantage throughout the two-hour and 28-minute affair, claiming 37 points (to Isner's 25) of five shots or more. Behind aggressive second serves, the World No. 77 exhibited great confidence as he took the opening set and did not face a break point in the second. Isner would eventually force a decider behind an efficent 7/2 tie-break, but Krajinovic would not be deterred by the swing in momentum.

The drama hit a crescendo in the third set, with Isner striking a blistering forehand to earn a break point at 4-4. But, with nerves of steel, Krajinovic claimed three straight points to edge ahead and he would storm back from 0/3 down in the deciding tie-break. A massive return at a hard-charging Isner's feet would give him his first match point at 6/5, which he would seize. With tears streaming down his face, an emotional Krajinovic fell to the court at the AccorHotels Arena, while his coach Petar Popovic ripped off his shirt and screamed in ecstasy.

In total, Krajinovic struck 43 winners, including 16 off his backhand wing, while benefiting from 20 Isner forehand unforced errors. He exacted revenge on the American nine years after their lone previous encounter at the 2008 Lubbock Challenger.

Isner stood within two victories of securing his place at the Nitto ATP Finals for the first time, but Krajinovic denied the big-serving American's place at The O2 in London. Now only Jack Sock, who will appear in Saturday's second semi-final, can overtake Pablo Carreno Busta for the final spot in the Emirates ATP Race To London. A finalist in Paris last year, World No. 14 Isner concludes his 2017 campaign with a 38-22 record and two titles (Newport, Atlanta).

"I knew he was feeling pretty good about his game and obviously gaining some confidence," Isner said of Krajinovic. "Everyone is so good on the tour. It's really a matter of who's got confidence, you know. And it's not that I didn't have confidence but he did as well. So the margins are really small.

"It's very disappointing. I had an opportunity here to do some things I've never done before, finish in something like in the Top 10 in the world. I think I have now finished 11th or 19 in the world eight consecutive years. So I mean, it's very good. It's consistent. But there's nothing better than that."

Serbian bidding to become the first player in history to win a Challenger title and Masters 1000 crown in the same season
It's what every player on the ATP Challenger Tour dreams of. The opportunity to take their game to the next level, and see all their hard work on the Challenger circuit translate to the ATP World Tour.
For Filip Krajinovic, that dream has become a reality in a flash. Many players competing on the ATP Challenger Tour have enjoyed great success in their transitions in 2017, with Denis Shapovalov, Damir Dzumhur and Yuichi Sugita streaking to career-highs in the Top 50 of the Emirates ATP Rankings. Add Krajinovic to that list.
The 25-year-old Serbian, who owns a tour-leading 47 match wins and five titles at the Challenger level this year, is into his first ATP World Tour final at the Rolex Paris Masters. In just his second tour-level event of the season, he has sprinted to the title match as a qualifier, claiming a pair of Top 20 scalps along the way (Querrey, Isner).
One of the candidates for Comeback Player of the Year in the 2017 ATP Awards presented by Moët & Chandon, Krajinovic is projected to soar to at least a career-high No. 33 on Monday. He's vaulted more than 200 spots in less than one year, having opened the season outside the Top 200 following surgery to remove a bone in his right wrist.
"I suffered a lot and I've had a lot of injuries in my career," said Krajinovic. "But I stayed calm. I knew that one day everything will come back. I didn't believe it's going to happen this year, this tournament. Coming from qualies it's an amazing feeling. Now I'm Top 40 in the world. I didn't expect that also. My goal was to be Top 100 at the end of the year. And now, I'm just happy and emotions are big.
"A couple years ago I was starting to play better and better and I broke into the Top 100. Then all of a sudden they saw that I have an extra bone in my wrist. So I had to take care of that. It was hard. It was mentally really tough because getting older and older, all the sponsors said no to me. It was hard for me, but my family stayed with me and now I'm here."
Players To Win On Both Circuits In 2017
Player
ATP World Tour Title(s) ATP Challenger Tour Title(s)
Ryan Harrison
Memphis Dallas, USA
Yuichi Sugita
Antalya
Yokohama, JPN; Shenzhen, CHN; Surbiton, UK
Victor Estrella Burgos
Quito
Santo Domingo, DOM
Damir Dzumhur St. Petersburg, Moscow Blois, FRA
Peter Gojowczyk Metz Happy Valley, AUS *Krajinovic is bidding to become the first player to win a Challenger title and a Masters 1000 title in the same season
Krajinovic has taken the ATP Challenger Tour by storm this year, in his quest to build his position in the Emirates ATP Rankings and rediscover his top level. A title on the clay of Heilbronn, Germany, as a qualifier, was followed by success in Marburg, Germany and Biella, Italy, during the summer months. Just one month ago, Krajinovic added crowns in Rome and Almaty, Kazakhstan, with both titles coming without dropping a set.
"It was my goal to play Challengers this year and get some confidence for the ATP World Tour," said Krajinovic. "I didn't expect to win five titles from five finals, but I believe that if I didn't do well in the Challengers, I would not have the confidence here in Paris. I'm proud and happy for that."
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Krajinovic has been the centerpiece of an impressive Challenger movement for the nation of Serbia this year. A total of 12 titles from five different players has been a bright spot in Novak Djokovic's absence. Janko Tipsarevic has lifted four trophies, with Laslo Djere, Dusan Lajovic and Miomir Kecmanovic each hoisting one. At 18, Kecmanovic is the country's #NextGenATP hopeful, claiming his maiden crown last week in Suzhou, China.

Krajinovic has reached the final of an ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event in just his fifth attempt. Only Jerzy Janowicz had fewer main draw appearances at the level (two) when he broke through in Paris 2012. In addition, he joins Alexander Zverev, Nick Kyrgios, Grigor Dimitrov and Albert Ramos-Vinolas as players making their Masters 1000 final debuts this year.
But with all his success this week, Krajinovic believes it is icing on the cake after completing such a dominant Challenger campaign. He is looking to turn the page on what has been a tumultuous career and provide Serbia with a new superstar. If he defeats Jack Sock for the Paris title on Sunday, his prize money for the week would total more than $990,000, which is more than his entire career earnings ($860,429).
"My goal this year was to play Challengers to pick up the points for the next year to play against those guys. I wanted to play the smaller tournaments to pick up the [Emirates ATP Rankings] points and I did that. I said now I'm going to just play ATPs all the time.
"I know I have the game, that's for sure. I just need to believe and to play with those guys every week. So next year it's going to be like that, playing with those guys. I'm going to be ready and then we'll see."