MADRID (AP) — Nakabangon si defending champion Novak Djokovic mula sa 0-3 paghahabol sa third set para gapiin si Nicolas Almagro, 6-1, 4-6, 7-5 at makausad sa third round ng Madrid Open nitong Miyerkules (Huwebes sa Manila).
Tinuldukan ni Djokovic ang matikas na rally sa final set nang basagin ang service ni Almagro para sa 6-5 bentahe tungo sa ika-15 panalo ngayon season.
Bunsod nang panalo, nanatili si Djokovic sa posibilidad na makaharap si four-time Madrid champion at home-crowd favorite Rafael Nadal sa semifinal. Umabante rin si Nadal nang pabagsakin si Fabio Fognini ng Italy, 7-6 (3), 3-6, 6-4.
“I haven’t played bad, I played really bad,” pahayag ni Nadal.”It was uncomfortable.”
Sunod na makakaharap ni Nadal si Nick Kyrgios ng Australia, nagwagi kay Ryan Harrison ng United States 6-3, 6-3, habang mapapalaban ang second-seeded na si Djokovic kay veteran Spaniard Feliciano Lopez, namayani kontra Gilles Simon ng France, 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (3).
“When you’re not winning too many matches, you have to build the confidence level. So to win the matches like this definitely helps confidence,” sambit ni Djokovic.
Nakamit naman ni Nadal ang ika-11 sunod na panalo at ika-30 ngayong taon. Naipanalo ng fifth-ranked Spaniard ang 22 sa huling 24 na set.
“Even though I played really badly, my attitude has been very positive. My attitude and the will to win today’s match was there. My level of tennis was not so high today, but I managed to make it through,” pahayag ni Nadal.
Sa women’s draw, umusad si Eugenie Bouchard ng Canada sa quarterfinals nang magretiro si top-seeded Angelique Kerber bunsod ng injury sa hita sa second set.
Hawak ni Bouchard ang 6-3, 5-0 bentahe nang sumuko ang karibal na German.
Nagwagi naman si third-seeded Simona Halep ng Romania kontra 16th-seeded Samantha Stosur ng Australia 6-4, 4-6, 6-4’ namayani si eighth-seeded Svetlana Kuznetsova ng Russia kay Qiang Wang ng China 6-4, 7-5, habang nanaig si 14th-seeded Kristina Mladenovic ng France kontra Oceane Dodin 6-2, 6-1.
