Rome: World No. 2 Novak Djokovic dealt with unfinished business by beating Argentina’s Juan Martin del Potro 6-1, 6-4 in a rain-delayed Italian Open tennis tournament quarterfinal here Saturday to enter the semifinal. Also making it to the last four stage was Alexander Zverev. The German teenager beat big-serving American John Isner 6-4, 6-7(5-7), 6-1.
The Serbian second seed will now play Austrian Dominic Thiem, who shocked seven times winner Rafa Nadal, Friday. However, Djokovic starts favourite having beaten the Austrian in all their four previous meetings.
The match between Djokovic and Del Potro was halted Friday with the score at 6-1, 1-2, and the Serbian serving, as rain and lightning lashed Rome’s Foro Italico.
Djokovic had wrapped up the first set in 44 minutes, after dropping serve in the opening game but then winning the next six.
He needed only one of two match points to finish off Del Potro in just over an hour and a half and reach his eighth Italian Open semifinal.
Meanwhile in the women’s segment Romania’s Simona Halep made light of heavy conditions to cruise into the final with a 7-5, 6-1 victory over Dutch 15th seed Kiki Bertens, Saturday.
The sixth seed, a winner in Madrid last weekend for the second year in a row, will meet either Spain’s French Open champion Garbine Muguruza or Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina in Sunday’s final.
The win was Halep’s 12th on clay this season and she made sure of her first Rome final in an hour and 17 minutes at the Foro Italico, with the start delayed by half an hour due to overnight rain.
After a hard-fought first set, with Bertens having her chances and saving five set points to hold serve and take it to 4-5 before then breaking Halep, the Romanian broke back and served out cleanly.
She then romped to a 4-0 lead in the second set before Bertens held serve. But there was no holding off Halep, who made only one unforced error in the set and wrapped up the victory as the skies opened again.
“I feel happy we could finish actually,” said Halep. “It’s really tough to stop because of the rain but here we are, I’m in the final and it’s really nice. I feel very confident irrespective of whom I am playing in the final.”
Agencies
