Following impressive showings on Friday afternoon, Jerzy Janowicz and Joao Sousa are scheduled to take part in a berth that will determine who will advance to the Open Sud de France final. This marks the third time that these two competitors will meet on the professional tour, with Janowicz leading the series 2-0.

Watch the SF here: Janowicz vs Sousa Live Stream

Seeded fifth at the tournament, Jerzy Janowicz worked his way past local star Gilles Simon to advance to the final four in Montpellier. He defeated Simon 6-2, 7-5 in a match that lasted 1 hour and 16 minutes, and marked his first semi-final appearance since last August.

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“Definitely I played my best match of the season,” said Janowicz. “Today, I knew I had to play my best tennis because Gilles moves incredibly well on the court. He also reads the game so well and he’s one of the best returners in the world. I knew I had to be focused on my serve all the time. I did that and I was playing aggressive throughout.”

Janowicz’s semi-final opponent will be Joao Sousa, who defeated German third seed Philipp Kohlschreiber 7-6(5), 6-4 to set up the encounter. The 49th ranked Sousa saved 10-break point attempts to upset Philipp. The seventh seed has now put on his best performance at a tournament since last September in Metz.

“Philipp is a very good player and we played a very good match,” said Sousa. “I didn’t serve well, but I played really well and I had very good defence. This is my best match in the tournament so far.”

This is set to be the third time that Janowicz and Sousa meet on the tour, with the Polish no. 1 leading the series 2-0. Janowicz beat Sousa in Valencia two years back and in three sets at Winston-Salem in 2014. Given his performances so far this week in Montpellier, he will remain the favourite in their third encounter.

Prediction: Jerzy Janowicz in Three Sets