GASQUET LATEST VICTIM IN DEL POTRO HOT STREAK

Written by: Staff on 27th October 2012

GASQUET LATEST VICTIM IN DEL POTRO HOT STREAK

epa03448876 France's Richard Gasquet in action against Argentina's Juan Martin Del Potro during their semifinal match at the Swiss Indoors tennis tournament at the St. Jakobshalle in Basel, Switzerland, 27 October 2012. EPA/GEORGIOS KEFALAS |

Courtesy of ATP: http://www.atpworldtour.com/News/Tennis/2012/10/43/Basel-Saturday-Del-Potro-Beats-Gasquet-In-Semis.aspx

Second seed Juan Martin del Potro won his eighth match in a row on Saturday as he recorded an emphatic 6-2, 6-2 win over third seed Richard Gasquet in the semi-finals of the Swiss Indoors Basel. The Argentine capitalised on a first serve percentage of 49 per cent from Gasquet to break the Frenchman five times in the 67-minute contest.

Gasquet is 10th in the South African Airways ATP Rankings Race To London, one spot away from clinching one of the two remaining berths in the eight-man field at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals. The 26 year old has one more chance to overtake the ninth-placed Janko Tipsarevic at next week’s BNP Paribas Masters, an ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournament.

Del Potro, who has already secured his place at the year-end championships, is bidding to win his second ATP World Tour tournament in a row, having last week triumphed at the Erste Bank Open in Vienna (d. Zemlja). It was his third trophy of the season, following victories at the Open 13 in Marseille (d. Llodra) and the Estoril Open, where he also defeated Gasquet.

In the final, del Potro will face either five-time champion and World No. 1 Roger Federer, or French wild card Paul-Henri Mathieu.