World No. 4 Stan Wawrinka will contest his second ATP World Tour final of the season at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships when he takes on either Feliciano Lopez or Marcos Baghdatis.

The Swiss won his semi-final match on Friday when Nick Kyrgios was forced to retire from the contest with a back injury. Wawrinka was leading 6-4, 3-0.

“For sure if you look from the beginning of the week I was not playing great at all,” said Wawrinka, who was two points from defeat in the first round against Sergiy Stakhovsky. “But that’s when I can still improve and I’m happy I did this week – not playing some great tennis, frustrated during matches, but still fighting and trying to find solutions to win more matches during the week to play better.”

The 30-year-old Wawrinka is back in Dubai for the first time since first-round exits in 2006 and 2008. The Lausanne native, now a two-time Grand Slam champion, is looking to win his 13th tour-level title and second of the season. In the first week of his 2016 ATP World Tour campaign, Wawrinka beat teenager Borna Coric to win the Chennai crown.

Wawrinka is on an eight-match winning streak in finals and has a 12-9 record.

Kyrgios was coming off his first ATP World Tour title in Marseille, where he defeated Marin Cilic in the final. “I couldn’t really serve anywhere near my full capacity today,” explained the injured Kyrgios. “He was playing great, anyway. He was playing really aggressive off the second shot of his serve.”

They are renowned for having among the finest single-handed backhand’s in the men’s game and on Thursday, Dominic Thiem emerged triumphant in the battle of two of the ATP World Tour’s brightest prospects, defeating Grigor Dimitrov 7-5, 6-2 in the Abierto Mexicano Telcel quarter-finals.

The World No. 15 in the Emirates ATP Rankings reached the semi-finals last week in Rio de Janeiro after capturing his fourth career title in Buenos Aires the week prior. World No. 26 Dimitrov was appearing in his fourth ATP World Tour quarter-final of 2016.

It was the pair’s first FedEx ATP Head2Head encounter and the 22-year-old Austrian made the quicker start of the two, breaking the Bulgarian’s opening service game before relinquishing the break for 2-2.

Seventh seed Dimitrov again faltered on serve at 5-5, allowing the No. 4 seed to serve out the opening set in one hour and two minutes. Thiem started the second set in the same vein as the first, breaking immediately for 1-0 before securing the double break for 5-2. He served out the match to love after one hour and 38 minutes.

“Breaking him in the first game of the second set was maybe the deciding moment of this match,” Thiem said. “The key of this match was to win the first set. I started to play better and better and the momentum swung to my side.

“Of course if you’re a set and a break up … you think you have momentum on your side but there’s still a very long way to go. My opinion is that Grigor is an unbelievable player with a beautiful game. I hope in the near future we are at the top together.”

The win books Thiem a semi-final showdown with either Taylor Fritz or Sam Querrey. “Tomorrow it’s going to be very tough against Fritz or Querrey,” Thiem said.

“They’re both on a run. Of course the biggest goal is to win this tournament but it’s going to be very difficult.”

Bernard Tomic will meet Alexandr Dolgopolov for a place in the Abierto Mexicano Telcel final after both posted straight-sets victories on Thursday. Fifth-seeded Tomic, contesting his fourth quarter-final of the year, landed a narrow 7-5, 7-5 victory against Ukraine’s Illya Marchenko, while Marchenko’s compatriot Dolgopolov easily accounted for Robin Haase 6-3, 6-3.

Tomic managed to break five times, winning 59 per cent of points on his 28-year-old opponent’s second serve. The World No. 21 in the Emirates ATP Rankings was appearing in the Acapulco quarter-finals for the second year in a row having earlier defeated Rajeev Ram and Adrian Mannarino without the loss of a set.

Marchenko was appearing in his eighth ATP World Tour quarter-final and had taken down a pair of American qualifiers in succession, Tommy Paul and Ryan Harrison, before encountering the 23-year-old Tomic. Dolgopolov, coming off an upset of top seed and defending champion David Ferrer, was contesting the quarter-finals at Acapulco for the fourth time. The 27 year old’s one-hour, four-minute result over Dutchman Haase levelled the pair’s FedEx ATP Head2Head series at 2-2.

He will carry confidence into his semi-final against Tomic, having won six of the nine times he has faced the Australian. “I’ll try to do the same as all the other matches I’ve played here,” Dolgopolov said. “I played aggressive here today and that’s what I need to do tomorrow.

“We’ve played a lot of times, he’s a tricky player. He slices well, he plays all around the court, serves well and breaks up your rhythm. I think it will be on my racquet because I risk a bit more than him in general.”

As Roger Federer’s comeback plans after knee surgery gather momentum, the Swiss great has taken to his website to thank fans for their outpouring of support. The 34 year old earlier this week shared a photo on social media highlighting his first hit-out on the practice courts since undergoing a right knee arthroscopy to repair a torn meniscus three weeks ago.

Federer posted the thank-you note to his website yesterday. “I would like to send out a heartfelt thank you for all your kind words after my injury and the surgery,” he posted. 

“It was an amazingly positive boost to receive all your cards, letters, presents and posts on the web. It really means a whole lot to me to feel your support in tough times.”

The injury, which occurred the day after his Australian Open semi-final loss to Novak Djokovic, forced Federer to skip the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam and the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships in Dubai.

“It is fantastic to be moving and working out again,” he added. “We’re taking it one step at a time, but I’m already really looking forward to getting back onto the court with full energy. Thank you very much again, see you soon.”

Buoyed by the news, Federer’s fans continued their words of encouragement. 

“It is wonderful to see you are able to be so mobile again after your surgery! I am so looking forward to seeing you play again, tennis is just not the same without you. Take care Roger, you mean the world to us,” Wendy_Redrobin of Great Britain posted.

“Dear Roger, thank you very much for your update. It is so good to know you are working out again!” Cecivonne of Ecuador said.

“Dear Roger, come back stronger and fully recuperated. We miss you,” Arevik of Armenia said.

“Thank you Roger for keeping in touch … we are all eager to see you back on court, stronger than ever. Take care,” Chervil of Australia posted.

“So very heartening to hear of your positive progress health wise. Such a relief. Can’t even begin to tell you how it feels not having you around but your jumping pics brought a huge smile to my face as does this message from you! Get better by the minute and see you in action soon!” Sigtias of India said.

Lucky loser Roberto Carballes Baena continues to have a strong week at the Brasil Open, knocking out second seed and local favourite Thomaz Bellucci 2-6, 6-4, 6-3 on Thursday to reach his second ATP World Tour quarter-final (Casablanca 2014). The Spaniard needed to be patient to score his biggest win to date, as the second-round match had been slated for Wednesday but was postponed due to rain.

The 22-year-old Carballes Baena, a regular of the ATP Challenger Tour (36-23 record in 2015), won 80 per cent of first serve points and closed out the win in just over two hours. It was his second win over a player in the Top 50 of the Emirates ATP Rankings (d. Sousa in Casablanca 2014) and a first quarter-final showing since reaching the semi-finals of Casablanca two years ago (l. to Garcia-Lopez).

Advancing to the quarter-finals were third seed Pablo Cuevas and fourth seed Federico Delbonis.

Cuevas, who beat Rafael Nadal en route to the Rio title last week, improved to 3-0 in his FedEX ATP Head2Head rivalry against Facundo Bagnis. The pair had squared off in the first round of Rio just a few days ago, and Cuevas maintained his mastery of the Argentine with a 6-3, 7-5 victory.

Delbonis needed two hours to win 3-6, 6-4, 6-2 against Diego Schwartzman. The left-hander was broken three times in the opening set, but did not drop serve the rest of the way. He finished with nine aces and improved to 2-0 at tour-level against Schwartzman.

Melo/Soares Ease Past Wild Cards

Top seeds Marcelo Melo and Bruno Soares made a fine start to their doubles campaign in Sao Paulo, defeating wild cards Nicolas Almagro and Eduardo Russi Assumpcao 6-1, 6-3 in the first round. The Brazilians fired six aces and were not broken in the 51-minute win.

Third seeds Maximo Gonzalez and Andre Sa advanced thanks to a 7-6(4), 6-1 victory over Italians Marco Cecchinato and Paolo Lorenzi. Gonzalez/Sa won 91 per cent of first serve points and saved both break points faced.

Novak Djokovic’s streak of ATP World Tour finals reached will end at 17 after the World No. 1 retired against Feliciano Lopez in the quarter-finals of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships on Thursday. The Serb was down 3-6 before retiring.

“It’s an eye problem,” Djokovic said. “I have had it ever since I arrived in Dubai. It started with an infection and then severe allergy.

“It’s gotten worse in the last two days, unfortunately. It’s the first time that I have had such a problem with the eye. It was ultra-sensitive today.”

Djokovic, who held a 14-0 record on the year and led the FedEx ATP Head2Head rivalry 7-0 against Lopez coming into the match, was sad to see his run of success come to an end, but the four-time Dubai champion was more concerned about disappointing his fans.

“I’m really sad to finish the tournament this way. I apologise to all the people who came to watch the match. I apologise to the tournament director and those who came out to support me. I’m really sad to end out the tournament this way, but I was forced to.

“[My match record] is the least of my thoughts in the moment,” said Djokovic, who is still planning on playing Davis Cup and defending his Indian Wells title. “I just hope that this problem will fade away in the next couple of days.”

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Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships – Dubai, U.A.E.

Novak Djokovic arrived in Dubai early for some fun at the city’s Wild Wadi Waterpark with his brother and friends. The World No. 1 enjoyed rides such as Tantrum Alley and Burj Surj. Read More

Stan Wawrinka took a zip wire over the Dubai Mall fountains. Read More

John Peers and Henri Kontinen helped out at the Tennis Emirates Coaching Clinic, giving young tennis players valuable lessons and encouragement to help improve their skills. View Photo

“It’s always good to give back to the kids, especially in Dubai because we only have the chance to come here once a year and it’s great to see the young players getting involved and enjoying the game,” said Peers.

Jamie Murray, Jean-Julien Rojer and Horia Tecau led a clinic for over 1,200 local school children at J.P. Morgan Kids’ Day. View Photo

“It was good fun, a lot of kids came out and there was a great energy out there,” said Murray. “The kids played well, some good young talent out there.”

Tomas Berdych took a journey behind-the-scenes at the tournament from the practice courts to the gym facilities and players’ lounge. View Photo

Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi took to the court with over 110 children in the Dubai Duty Free Special Needs clinic. “I’ve done a few other kids events but this one stands apart because so many kids were involved and it’s a phenomenal initiative by the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships. This event is a great way to make the kids feel like part of the society and I am really happy to participate,” he said. View Photo

Malek Jaziri and Marcos Baghdatis spent the afternoon at the Emirates Aviation College and experienced piloting the Airbus A380 – the world’s largest passenger aircraft. View Photo

Abierto Mexicano Telcel – Acapulco, Mexico

Grigor Dimitrov, Bernard Tomic, Jeremy Chardy, Santiago Gonzalez and Denis Kudla were among the players to attend the players’ party, where we gave Steve Johnson the microphone for an ATP World Tour Uncovered exclusive. Watch Video

Gonzalez joined David Ferrer for mini tennis at the dock of the Mexican naval base, Fort San Diego. They also took a tour of a sailboat that has voyaged around the world. View Photo

Donald Young and Ryan Harrison participated in autograph sessions.

Victor Estrella Burgos met with a group of 25 local school children and conducted a Q&A session with them on all things tennis. View Photo

Doubles duo Santiago Gonzalez and Mariusz Fyrstenberg participated in a baby turtle release at the beach in Acapulco, and then later rode moto quad runners together, along with Santiago’s son & family. View Photo

Brasil Open – Sao Paulo, Brazil

Marcelo Melo, Bruno Soares, Thomaz Bellucci, Andre Sao, Paolo Lorenzi and Pablo Cuevas were among the players to attend the Sponsors Cocktail Party, while Pablo Carreno Busta, Marcel Granollers, Blaz Rola, Inigo Cervantes and Gastao Elias were among those to attend the Players’ Dinner.