Marin Cilic powered past Juan Monaco 7-5, 6-1 in the quarter-finals of the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships 2016 on Friday. The Croatian broke serve on the final point of the opening set, then raced to a 5-0 lead in the second set before closing out the win in 80 minutes. “My serve was a bit up-and-down today. It’s something I’ll definitely have to straighten out for my match tomorrow,” Cilic said. “He returned really well in the first set. In the second after I broke him, I could see that he was having some trouble. It’s unfortunate for him since I know he’s had a lot of injuries.” Monaco, who is on the comeback trail after battling wrist, shoulder...
It was two wins in two matches for Milos Raonic on Friday at the China Open in Beijing as he booked his spot in the semi-finals. After rain washed him off the schedule on Thursday, the Canadian came out Friday morning to defeat Malek Jaziri 6-3, 6-4 in just 58 minutes. He then returned to the court later for a 6-4, 6-4 victory over Pablo Carreno Busta in the quarter-finals. Carreno Busta was also playing his second match of the day, having earlier completed a 5-7, 6-4, 6-1 comeback victory over Richard Gasquet. Raonic goes on to face Grigor Dimitrov for a place in the final, after the Bulgarian ousted second seed Rafael Nadal. Raonic has a 1-2 FedEx ATP...
Second seeds Marcelo Melo and Lukasz Kubot reached the semi-finals of the China Open in Beijing after edging Wimbledon finalists Julien Benneteau and Edouard Roger-Vasselin 5-7, 6-3, 10-8 on Thursday. The Brazilian/Polish duo are chasing their second title together after victory in Vienna last year (d. Murray/Peers). “We’re happy to be in the semis here in Beijing,” said Melo. “We played really well today. It was a tough match. The French guys were playing really good. We hope we can continue playing the same way, as aggressive as we were, and we are enjoying the moment.” They go on to face Jack Sock and Bernard Tomic, who also came from a set down to beat Paolo Lorenzi and Guido Pella...
Second seed Rafael Nadal overcame a mid-match surge from Adrian Mannarino on Thursday at the China Open, prevailing in a tight second set to advance in their second-round match under the lights, 6-1, 7-6(6). “I think I played a fantastic first set. Great level of tennis, serving very good, hitting so good. During the second set, I slowed the rhythm a little bit and he played very well,” said Nadal. “I feel very happy that I won that tie-break. I think I played with the right amount of determination in the tie-break. It’s very important for my confidence to pass through these tough moments.” The 2005 China Open champion was initially ruthless against Mannarino, breaking the Frenchman three times as...
Gael Monfils survived an injury scare, then finished strongly to down fellow Frenchman Gilles Simon 6-1, 6-4 and book a spot in the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships 2016 quarter-finals on Thursday. Monfils earned only his second victory in eight FedEx ATP Head2Head meetings with Simon, and snapped a four-match losing streak against his good friend. “In the second set, Gilles started to run a lot better. He played really great for four games or so and I knew I needed to be patient for his level to come back down a bit,” Monfils said. “At the same time, I still needed to be the aggressor. I’ve made improvements mentally, physically and technically this year, and that helped me today...