Top seed Lucas Pouille booked his spot in the semi-finals of the Gazprom Hungarian Open on Friday as he defeated Martin Klizan 6-4, 6-3 in Budapest. <\/p>\n
The Frenchman saved two match points to edge Jiri Vesely in his opening second-round match on Thursday, but had an easier time against Klizan, claiming victory in 84 minutes as he saved five of seven break points. <\/p>\n
\"I think it was a great match,\" said Pouille. \"It was much better than yesterday. My level is increasing and that's good because tomorrow I know it's going to be a tough one. I'm very happy with my performance today.\" <\/p>\n
The 23-year-old Pouille is coming off his second ATP World Tour Masters 1000 semi-final showing at last weeks Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters (l. to Ramos-Vinolas) and improved to a 7-1 mark on clay for the season. <\/p>\n
Currently at a career-high No. 14 in the Emirates ATP Rankings, Pouille is bidding to win his second ATP World Tour title, adding to his victory in Metz last year. <\/p>\n
For a place in the final, Pouille will face sixth seed Paolo Lorenzi, who defeated Andrey Kuznetsov 6-4, 6-4 in one hour and 33 minutes, fending off a late fightback from the Russian after leading 5-1 in the second set. \"I think it was one of my best matches of the year,\" said Lorenzi. \"He was playing really good tennis. I'm very happy about the match.\" <\/p>\n
Pouille leads Lorenzi 2-0 in their FedEx ATP Head2Head series, including victory over the Italian last week in Monte-Carlo. Lorenzi is looking to reach his second ATP World Tour final of the season, after finishing runner-up on clay in Quito in February (l. to Estrella Burgos). <\/p>\n
In doubles semi-final action, fourth seeds Brian Baker and Nikola Mektic defeated second seeds Treat Huey and Max Mirnyi 6-4, 6-2. <\/p>\n
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Originally posted here: <\/p>\n
Pouille Enjoys Smoother Progress In Budapest - ATP World Tour<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Top seed Lucas Pouille booked his spot in the semi-finals of the Gazprom Hungarian Open on Friday as he defeated Martin Klizan 6-4, 6-3 in Budapest. The Frenchman saved two match points to edge Jiri Vesely in his opening second-round match on Thursday, but had an easier time against Klizan, claiming victory in 84 minutes as he saved five of seven break points Continue reading