ATP World Tour No. 9 Fernando Verdasco continued his strong clay-court form as he reached his second straight final with a 6-7(3), 7-5, 6-1 victory over fellow Spaniard David Ferrer Saturday in the semi-finals of the Barcelona Open BancSabadell, an ATP World Tour 500 tennis tournament.The fifth-seeded Verdasco, who reached his first ATP World Tour Masters 1000 final last week in Monte-Carlo (l. to Nadal), improved to a 10-2 mark on clay in just three tournaments on the surface this season; he was also a quarter-finalist in Acapulco (l. to Monaco) in February.
"This win is very important for me because it is the first time that I have played in two consecutive finals, and I would especially like to win here, so I will try to rest well and to be at my best tomorrow," said Verdasco. "The fact that I have reached two clay court finals gives me a lot of confidence. I feel good and comfortable with my play. This year I have adapted to the surface better than ever; as I get more experienced it becomes easier."
The No. 17-ranked Ferrer looked on course to reach the Barcelona final for the third straight year when he led by a set and a break at 4-3 in the second set. However, Verdasco hit back to level at 4-4 before breaking serve again in a tight 12th game to seal the second set as Ferrer netted a short forehand. Buoyed by the momentum shift, Verdasco raced away with the deciding set, breaking serve twice to claim victory in two hours and 36 minutes.
"David was dominating the match and playing at a very high level; he’s a tough player and I was waiting to see if would give me a chance to get into the match again," reflected Verdasco. "I took that chance as soon as I had it, and that gave me a lot of confidence in myself."
The 26-year-old Verdasco is through to his 12th ATP World Tour final (4-7 record) and third of the season. He captured his fourth title at the SAP Open (d. Roddick) in San Jose earlier in the year.
As he bids to become the eighth straight Spanish champion in Barcelona, Verdasco will face second seed Robin Soderling, who brought to an end Dutch Thiemo de Bakker’s stellar run in Barcelona with a 6-1, 6-4 victory in the second semi-final.
Soderling takes a 4-1 lead into the clash with Verdasco and has won both their meetings on clay, at Roland Garros in 2005 and in Bastad in 2007.
"It’s going to be a very difficult final," said Verdasco. "He has won most of our matches and is ranked higher than me but I think it all depends on how we play tomorrow. Soderling is a player who hits extremely hard, you have to move him around and try to tire him out so that his shots are not as precise."
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Singles - Semifinals
(5) Fernando Verdasco (ESP) d. (8) David Ferrer (ESP) 67(3) 75 61
(2) Robin Soderling (SWE) d. Thiemo de Bakker (NED) 61 64
No comments:
Post a Comment