Defending champion Rafael Nadal suffered another setback on Saturday when he squandered a match point before losing 6-4, 4-6, 7-6 (7/4) to Austria’s Dominic Thiem in the Argentina Open semi-finals.
Top seed Nadal, playing on his favorite clay surface, finally wilted in the 32?C heat in Buenos Aires after 2 hours, 50 minutes on court against Thiem, the world No. 19, who was due to face Nicolas Almagro in yesterday’s final.
“It was a tough match. I had a chance to win and missed it, but Thiem played well,” Nadal said. “I’m not worried. I just lacked consistency and need to make fewer unforced errors, but that’s nothing.”
Photo: AP
Nadal now heads for Rio de Janeiro where he will again be top seed and where he was champion in 2014.
Almagro, who put out third seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the quarter-finals, went one better in the semis by defeating second seed David Ferrer 6-4, 7-5.
Ferrer had to complete his rain-delayed quarter-final earlier on Saturday, seeing off Uruguay’s Pablo Cuevas 6-4, 1-6, 6-3.
MEMPHIS OPEN
AFP, WASHINGTON
Three-time defending champion Kei Nishikori advanced to the Memphis Open final on Saturday by beating fourth seed Sam Querrey of the US, setting up a title showdown with history-making teenager Taylor Fritz.
Top seed Nishikori rallied to beat Querrey 3-6, 6-3, 6-3 for his 16th consecutive Memphis Open victory over four years, while 18-year-old American wild-card Fritz, playing only his third ATP Tour event, ousted Lithuania’s Ricardas Berankis 2-6, 6-3, 6-4.
Fritz fired 17 aces in becoming the youngest American in an ATP Tour final since a 17-year-old Michael Chang won at Wembley in 1989 and he shattered the US mark for fewest ATP Tour events needed to reach a final, the 10 tournaments taken by Jimmy Connors and Andy Roddick.
After starting the week with a 1-2 record, world No. 145 Fritz has won four matches and would crack the top 100 by taking the title.
“It feels incredible,” Fritz said. “It’s crazy what winning four tennis matches can achieve. I’m so happy.”
World No. 7 Nishikori downed Querrey for the fourth meeting in a row, improving to 5-3 in their career rivalry by eliminating him in the semis as he did last year.
WORLD TOURNAMENT
AP, ROTTERDAM, Netherlands
Fifth seed Gael Monfils of France beat Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany 6-3, 6-2 on Saturday to set up a World Tennis Tournament final against Martin Klizan of Slovakia, who earlier beat qualifier Nicolas Mahut of France 6-7 (3/7), 7-6 (9/7), 6-2.
“It was an incredible moment. I never thought I could win, because Nicolas was playing great tennis,” the 26-year-old Klizan said. “Maybe I was lucky, but I tried to fight until the last point. I think the crowd enjoyed the show.”
Monfils had seven aces in his match, but needed to save three break points in the first set. He took complete control after breaking Kohlschreiber in the fifth game of the second.
“I covered the court very well and hit my backhand well today. Sometimes luck is on your side and everything works,” Monfils said.
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