Kevin Anderson broke new ground on Friday when the determined South African booked a spot in his first ATP World Tour Masters 1000 semi-final.
The sixth seed earned his 20th match win of the year (20-6) with a 7-6(3), 3-6, 6-3 victory over Serbian qualifier Dusan Lajovic, to break an 0-10 mark in Masters 1000 quarter-finals. In striking 15 aces, Anderson has now hit 45 aces in three matches at the Caja Magica.
“I must be honest, I think I did a good job then because I didn't really think of it too much [of my 0-10 record in Masters 1000 quarter-finals]," said Anderson. "I had lots of reason to think about it. Indian Wells and Miami, not that long ago. Two 7-6s in the third [set], to fall a bit short, [including] match points against [Pablo] Carreno Busta in Miami.
“Of course, I knew the opportunity existed today. I thought first step was putting myself in that position. I was able to do that. Going out there today, I just really focused on what I needed to do. Thinking too much about previous results is not going to do me too much good, outside of the fact that, sure, there was motivation to get through. I really wanted to break through and be in the semi-finals. It was a goal that I set myself. It doesn't mean that I'm done. It definitely feels good. It was a mini goal accomplished for me today.”
Anderson will next face fifth-seeded Austrian Dominic Thiem, who beat World No. 1 Rafael Nadal, to avenge his loss in the 2017 Madrid final. Anderson leads Thiem 6-0 in their FedEx ATP Head2Head series, but the pair has not met before on clay courts.
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Anderson broke serve for 4-2, but Lajovic responded immediately. A strong start to the tie-break helped Anderson to clinch the set, which ended with Lajovic hitting a forehand wide. But Juan Martin del Potro’s conqueror didn’t stop fighting and broke in the sixth game of the second set. Anderson committed his 10th unforced error of the set in hitting a backhand into the net, but soon regrouped in the decider.
Anderson won four of the first five games, saving one break point at 3-1, to seize control and overpower Lajovic, the first qualifier to reach the Madrid quarter-finals since Colombia’s Santiago Giraldo in 2014, for victory in two hours and 12 minutes. Anderson, one of the circuit’s hardest trainers, will now look to cut down on his 18 forehand errors ahead of Saturday.
Anderson lifted his fourth ATP World Tour title at the inaugural New York Open (d. Querrey) in February and has a 20-6 match record on the season. Lajovic, who earned the first Top 10 win of his career over Del Potro on Thursday, is now 8-11 on the year.
Did You Know?
Anderson first broke into the Top 10 on 12 October 2015, but after overcoming a catalogue of injuries, the 31-year-old worked his way back from No. 80 (on 16 January 2017) to a return to the elite of the ATP Rankings on 19 February 2018. He is currently at a career-high No. 8.