...
...
Next Story

Del Potro overpowers Gasquet, into Basel final

Juan Martin del Potro reached his second ATP final in succession with a 6-2, 6-2 victory over Frenchman Richard Gasquet on Saturday at the Swiss Indoors.

Updated on: Oct 27, 2012 08:17 PM IST
Advertisement

Juan Martin del Potro reached his second ATP final in succession with a 6-2, 6-2 victory over Frenchman Richard Gasquet on Saturday at the Swiss Indoors.

Argentina-s-Juan-Martin-del-Potro-reacts-after-winning-his-semi-final-match-against-Richard-Gasquet-of-France-at-the-Swiss-Indoors-ATP-tennis-tournament-in-Basel-Reuters
Argentina-s-Juan-Martin-del-Potro-reacts-after-winning-his-semi-final-match-against-Richard-Gasquet-of-France-at-the-Swiss-Indoors-ATP-tennis-tournament-in-Basel-Reuters

The Argentine ended a 67-minute effort with four straight aces as he completed a demolition of the third seed at the St Jakobshalle.

The second-seeded South American, champion last weekend in Vienna after returning from a month away with a left wrist problem, will Sunday face the winner from top seed and five-time champion Roger Federer and fellow Frenchman Paul-Henri Mathieu.

Del Potro was pleased with his serving as he prepares a possible title in Federer's hometown.

"It was almost perfect today," said the South American who has now beaten Gasquet in five of their six meetings, including three in 2012.

"I was very pleased with my serve. But I still have work to do, I had two double-faults in the second set," he said in all seriousness.

"If I want to win the title, I can't have that. But overall I'm glad about my level, I'm ready for a fight in the final."

"I was a little tired, and I was serving poorly," said Gasquet. "He was making great returns.

"He's a tough opponent for me, and he was by far the best player on the court today. I can play better, but he's certainly not easy for me."

Gasquet, playing his first Basel, is chasing one of two remaining spots in the year-end finals in London starting November 5.

He goes to next week's Paris Masters needing top performances from the start after a first-round bye. He stands 10th in the points race with two more positions in the eight-man field still open.

Del Potro qualified into the World Tour Finals this week after reaching the Basel quarter-finals and was helped by the injury withdrawal of Rafael Nadal.

The 2008 Basel semi-finalist has won a career-best 61 matches this season and extended his current win streak to eight matches.

 
Stay updated with the latest scores, results, and headlines from us sports, wwe, football, tennis, hockey, and other sports. Follow live action, big tournaments, and top players across all major leagues on sports by Hindustan Times.
Stay updated with the latest scores, results, and headlines from us sports, wwe, football, tennis, hockey, and other sports. Follow live action, big tournaments, and top players across all major leagues on sports by Hindustan Times.
SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Hindustantimes wants to start sending you push notifications. Click allow to subscribe