#NextGenATP Michelsen Flies Into First Tour-Level SF In Newport

American Alex Michelsen’s breakthrough week hit a new high Friday at the Infosys Hall of Fame Open.

The 18-year-old downed fourth seed Mackenzie McDonald 6-3, 6-3 to reach his first tour-level semi-final at the ATP 250 event. World No. 190 Michelsen came out of the blocks strong, dropping just one point behind his first serve in the opening set. The teenager then relied on his backhand in key moments to close the match after one hour, 11 minutes.

“I served really well, first-serve percentage was probably pretty high,” Michelsen said in his on-court interview. “The serve was key today and I didn’t miss too many groundstrokes either, so that was nice.” 

Michelsen arrived in Newport without a tour-level match win, but has enjoyed a career-best performance, downing defending champion Maxime Cressy, James Duckworth, and McDonald to set a meeting against top seed Tommy Paul or John Isner in the last four.

Currently ninth in the Pepperstone ATP Live Next Gen Race, Michelsen is aiming to make his debut at the Next Gen ATP Finals, which showcases the season’s top eight 21-and-under players.

The California native arrived at the grass-court tournament following his triumph at last week’s ATP Challenger Tour event in Chicago. Michelsen is up to No. 152 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings.