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Zabaleta upsets Blake to reach final

Mariano Zabaleta of Argentina reacts after winning the first set against James Blake during their US Men's Clay Court Championships semi-final match on Saturday in Houston, Texas. Zabaleta defeated Blake 7-5, 7-6 (7) to advance to the finals. PHOTO: AP

Argentine Mariano Zabaleta upset second-seeded US player James Blake 7-5, 7-6 (9/7) on Saturday to reach the final of the US Men's Clay Court Championships.

Zabaleta, in search of his fourth career title, will face unseeded Croatian Ivo Karlovic, who fired 15 aces on the way to a 7-6 (7/5), 6-2 victory over Albert Montanes of Spain.

Zabaleta, ranked 156th in the world, arrived in Houston with a 1-3 match record for the season.

Breaking Blake

He broke Blake in the 11th game of the first opening set and served it out.

Blake earned his first service break in the eighth game of the second set, but immediately dropped his own serve as the set went to the tiebreaker.

Blake had three set points in the decider before Zabaleta stormed back, giving himself the chance at his first title since 2004.

His other title came in Bogota in 1998.

Ranked ninth in the world, Blake entered this event after winning his opening singles match to put the US on the way to victory in the Davis Cup quarter-finals, where he also won a no-pressure reverse singles.

Mediocre history

Overcoming a mediocre history here, where he had never moved past the quarter-finals, Blake appeared poised to battle for the title.

Instead he became the latest victim of Zabaleta, who had already eliminated fourth seed and defending champion Mardy Fish and fifth seed Jurgen Melzer of Austria.

Karlovic will be appearing in his third career ATP final on as many surfaces and trying to capture his first ATP title.

Four aces

Karlovic saved the only three break points he faced in the fifth game of the opening set and broke Montanes in the fifth and seventh games in the second set, closing the match with four consecutive aces.

The towering Croatian has served 43 aces this week for a total of 306 this year.

Zabaleta will try to become the fourth Argentinian this year to capture an ATP title, along with Guillermo Canas, Juan Monaco and Juan Ignacio Chela.
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