Stan Wawrinka spoiled Nishesh Basavareddy’s 20th birthday on Friday, when the 40-year-old earned a 7-6(8), 6-3 victory against the American to reach the semi-finals of the Open Aix Provence Crédit Agricole.
The Swiss rode his momentum following a marathon first set to book his first semi-final ticket at any level since last October at the ATP 250 in Stockholm. Wawrinka held set point on return at 5-4, but was forced to a tie-break, during which he saved two set points before closing out the opener.
The wild card finished the match having won 80 per cent of his first-serve points, compared to Basavareddy’s 66 per cent, according to Infosys ATP Stats.
Borna Coric also advanced to the last four with a 7-5, 6-4 win against Mariano Navone, continuing his Challenger resurgence and remaining on course for a final showdown with Wawrinka.
“I thought this was the best match I’ve played on clay so far this year,” said Coric, who is aiming for a season-leading fourth Challenger title. “I was really happy with my performance, I was serving good, I was playing from the baseline great. I had a small drop off in the second set, but overall I’m really happy. I need to recover well and use some ice as it was obviously a long match, but I’m looking forward to tomorrow.”
While it may be tempting to look ahead to a championship match featuring fan favourites’ Wawrinka and Coric, the three-time major champion will first have to get past Coric’s countryman Borna Gojo while the 28-year-old faces Peruvian qualifier Ignacio Buse in the semi-finals.
Buse led Reilly Opelka 7-6(4), 2-3 when the American was forced to retire due to a right hip injury. Gojo defeated Valentin Vacherot 6-2, 6-3.