ATP Rio de Janeiro: Semifinal Predictions

All four quarterfinal matches at the Rio Open went three sets on Friday, or really Friday/Saturday morning. The last two matches were so epic that the length pushed the players into the wee hours of the morning.

David Ferrer and Andreas Haider Maurer were fortunate to escape their matches and be off the court at a decent hour. Rafael Nadal and Fabio Fognini both played grueling matches whose ending was seriously in doubt in their second sets.

Read on to see who will win their semifinal match. Leave your thoughts in the comments below.

Andreas Haider-Maurer (AUT) vs. David Ferrer (ESP)

The last ball was struck at 3:18 in the morning Rio time.

Haider-Maurer is the lone seed to make it to the semifinals in Rio. In order to make it this far, he dispatched No.3 seed Tommy Robredo and hometown favorite Joao Souza. It took 2 hours and 21 minutes for Haider-Maurer to defeat the Brazilian 7-6 1-6 6-4.

“The crowd was tough, but I had a good feeling on the center court,” Haider-Maurer said. “It was a pleasure to play in front of this crowd. It was a tough match, up and down, but I’m very happy that I won.”

Ferrer had a similarly grueling match in his quarterfinal victory over veteran Juan Monaco, 6-3 4-6 6-2. Ferrer was able to wear Monaco down and the result was never in doubt in the third set.

“He played very aggressive… I tried to be focused on every point and I took my chances,” said Ferrer. “I will try my best to be in the final.”

Haider-Maurer knows he will be playing a clay court great and has nothing to lose against Ferrer. “I can enjoy the match against him,” he said. “I played him two times already and in both, I had no chance against him. But I want to go on the court and enjoy this match. I think I have a chance if I play my game.”

Haider-Maurer has to go in with optimism, but he doesn’t have a chance.

Prediction: Ferrer

Fabio Fognini (ITA) vs. Rafael Nadal (ESP)

More from Tournaments

After taking the first set 6-4, Fognini found himself down 1-5 in the second set of his quarterfinal versus Federico Delbonis of Argentina. Effort levels rise and fall with Fognini and he turned it on to win five games in a row and force Delbonis to serve to stay in the match. Delbonis forced the tiebreak and won the second set. Fognini’s level of interest wained at times in the final set, but he was able to take it to another tiebreak and come out on top after an astounding three hours and 12 minutes on court.

“It’s always a tough match against Federico, and this was a crazy match,” he said. “Now I’m happy, and all I want to do is rest well.”

He will need the rest to face the King of Clay, but rest will be in short supply for his opponent at well. Nadal did not even start his match against Sao Paulo winner Pablo Cuevas until well after midnight. He dropped the first set and was in danger of losing the second when the score was at five all. It was then that Nadal hit another gear, winning eight straight games for the win, 4-6 7-5 6-0.

The last ball was struck at 3:18 in the morning Rio time. “It was a complicated time at the beginning, but in the second set I felt better,” said Nadal. “I felt better control in the match even though I could not break him until 6-5. I’m happy because this was an important victory for me, to be able to be in a semi-final. It’s a great result, it gives me points, confidence and the opportunity to play tomorrow. I hope I’m recovered.”

Nadal is scheduled to take the court at 7:00pm, less that 16 hours after he left. He will need to recover well to beat the enigmatic Fognini. Nadal is the defending champion and has never lost a match in Rio. His first loss will not be here.

Prediction: Nadal

For a schedule of the semifinal matches, click here.

Next: Top 10 Servers in Tennis Today

More from Lob and Smash

Home/Tournaments