GENEVA: Defending champion Casper Ruud beat Australia’s world number 85 Thanasi Kokkinakis in the Geneva Open quarter-finals on Thursday.
Norway’s Ruud overcame his opponent 6-4, 7-6 (7-3).
Ruud in the semi-final now expects a tough battle against Reilly Opelka’s giant serve as the two top-20 players target entering next week’s French Open with a title.
World number eight Ruud is on a roll, having reached the semis in Rome last week — and the Norwegian is looking comfortable on the Swiss clay ahead of the second Grand Slam event of the year.
But he faces a challenge in handling the towering serve of US world number 18 Opelka, who at 2.11 metres is the joint-tallest player ever on the tour.
“I expect it to be tough,” said 23-year-old Ruud. “Reilly, with the serve and the altitude, it is tough to return his serve. But I will do my best and see how I can do.
“He is a similar age to myself and it will be another battle against him and hopefully it will be a good one.”
Opelka beat Dutch world number 64 Tallon Griekspoor 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 in their last-eight match.
Opelka, 24, won the Houston clay court tournament last month to secure his fourth ATP tour title and is chasing a first trophy outside his homeland.
In the second semi-final, French veteran Richard Gasquet will take on Portugal’s 79-ranked Joao Sousa.
Gasquet, 35, is on vintage form, having beaten world number two Daniil Medvedev in the round of 16, in what was the US Open champion’s first match back following a hernia operation.
Gasquet, ranked 75th, defeated Poland’s Kamil Majchrzak 6-2, 6-4 on Thursday while Sousa beat Ilya Ivashka 7-5, 7-5.
Published in Dawn,May 21st, 2022
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