John Isner kept his Atlanta Open title defense on track on Friday with a 7-6 (10/8), 6-4 quarter-final victory over Australian Marinko Matosevic.
A day after Isner fired 30 aces, but still had to fight off two match points in a second-round win over fellow American Robby Ginepri, he fired 17 aces and won 84 percent of his first-serve points in his win over Matosevic.
The towering Isner was broken in the first game of the match, but kept his composure to take the opening set in a tie-break, saving a set point along the way.
Photo: EPA
He converted two of his own five break chances to seal the win, breaking for a 4-3 lead in the second set and pounding an ace on his first match point.
“I knew he was struggling out there a little bit and he knew I was struggling out there a little bit,” Isner said of his Australian opponent. “A lot of times those situations are a big advantage for me because I can muster up enough energy to pop some big serves in.”
“The beginning of the second set it felt like someone put us in the oven. It was rough. There’s only one option for me there: play big and play aggressive. A lot of times it works out,” the American said.
Photo: AFP
Isner, the champion in Atlanta last year and runner-up to compatriot Mardy Fish in both 2010 and 2011, will face compatriot Jack Sock, also of the US, for a place in the final.
Sock rallied from an early 1-4 deficit to dispatch Slovakian Lukas Lacko 7-6 (8/6), 6-2.
Sock, who is enjoying the best season of his career, is now in his fifth quarter-final of the year.
“I had a pretty rough start,” Sock said.
“He came out keeping the ball really deep, keeping me off the baseline and out of my forehand. I broke back for 5-4 and the momentum shifted in my favor,” he added.
Israel’s Dudi Sela booked a semi-final berth with a 7-5, 1-6, 6-2 upset of Canadian fourth seed Vasek Pospisil.
Sela notched his 100th Tour-level match win and reached the fifth ATP semi-final of his career.
The Israeli next faces Germany’s Benjamin Becker, who defeated Thiemo de Bakker of the Netherlands 6-4, 6-2.
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