Thailand's Danai Udomchoke battled back from an early deficit to beat Im Kyu-Tae of South Korea Saturday in straight sets 6-4, 6-2 and advance to the final of the round-robin Asia Cup.
Danai, the 100,000-dollar tournament's top seed, trailed 3-0 in the first set before kicking it into a higher gear. He took the set by rattling off five consecutive games.
"My feet had a little bit of a problem," said Danai, who suffered from blisters on his left foot.
"I called the trainer over to fix it and realised I should just take the tape off. It just didn't feel right," he added.
That break in the action swung the momentum in the Thai's favour and propelled him into the final, where he will face Japan's Gouichi Motomura on Sunday.
Needing a service break at 4-2, the 26-year-old Thai broke Im with a hearty backhand ripped cross-court and followed with a delicate drop shot in the next game to draw level.
The Thai star continued his good form in the second set, breaking the 26-year-old Korean second seed in the first game.
{{/usCountry}}The Thai star continued his good form in the second set, breaking the 26-year-old Korean second seed in the first game.
{{/usCountry}}In the seventh game, Im double-faulted on break point, leaving Danai in a strong position.
The local hero booked his place in the final with an emphatic ace down the middle.
"Not counting the first three games, I feel like this was my best performance of the tournament," Danai said.
His upcoming opponent, number four seed Motomura, beat third-seeded Uzbek Denis Istomin in a hard fought 7-6 (7-5), 4-6, 6-2 match that spanned two hours and five minutes.
After a see-saw first set, Motomura's won the tie-break.
The Japanese, who thought he had the day off after winning Friday, has played two consecutive three-set matches entering Sunday's final.
"After yesterday I thought I had the day off and that I went straight to the finals," Motomura said.
The 33-year-old veteran will square off against Danai, who has surrendered just one set this week.
"I think it's going to be very interesting playing against him. We've played so many times," Motomura said.
The Thai player expects Motomura to be just as tenacious regardless of how rigorous his previous matches have been.