Qualifiers Pack A Punch In Budapest QFs
Qualifiers Pack A Punch In Budapest QFs
Two qualifiers posted upsets in quarter-final action on Friday at the Gazprom Hungarian Open in Budapest.
In-form Aljaz Bedene recorded his 20th win in his past 21 matches at all levels as he ousted second seed Ivo Karlovic 6-4, 6-3 in 63 minutes. The Briton has been on a tear on the ATP Challenger Tour in recent weeks, winning titles in Irving, Sophia Antipolis and Barletta.
“The conditions are slow and he prefers quicker conditions,” said Bedene. “I started the match really well, played a few really good points on the return, broke the first game, and was serving really well throughout the whole match.”
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After dropping just five points on serve to defeat Karlovic, Bedene is now through to his first ATP World Tour semi-final since Chennai 2016 and goes on to face fellow qualifier Laslo Djere, who saved a match point as he shocked fourth seed Fernando Verdasco 2-6, 7-6(4), 6-2.
Djere’s run was on the brink of ending when he trailed 2-6, 4-5 and faced match point on his serve at 30/40. But he held on, won the ensuing tie-break, before breaking Verdasco in the second, sixth and eighth games of the decider. The Serbian is enjoying good support this week, as he also speaks Hungarian.
“It was a really tough match,” said Djere. “I was a little bit tired at the beginning, but as time passed I felt better and better. It was raining and the conditions were difficult because it was a little bit slow. But in the second set I started to play better and I really felt I could win the match.”
World No. 184 Djere is the second-lowest-ranked semi-finalist of 2017 behind No. 208 Casper Ruud at Rio de Janeiro. The 21 year old has recorded the first four tour-level wins of his career this month, reaching the second round in Marrakech before his three wins at this ATP World Tour 250 clay-court tournament in Budapest to reach the last four.