2010 ATP Rakuten Japan Open; Rafael Nadal to meet Gael Monfils in the title battle
The top seed Rafael Nadal of Spain prevented a total of two match points to get past Viktor Troicki in a three setter clash to confirm his spot in the final of the 2010 ATP Rakuten Japan Open Men’s Singles Competition on Saturday.
The final match score was 7-6(4), 4-6, 7-6(7). The clash concluded in a time period of two hours and thirty nine minutes in Tokyo.
The United States Open champion, as a result of this victory has now a match record of 55-4 versus the contenders outside the top ten in 2010.
World number fifty four, Viktor Troicki came within two points of win at 6-5, 30-15 during the third set of the match and squandered match point chances at 6-5 and 7-6 in the tie-break on Saturday. Viktor, who prevented just a
single match point versus Jurgen Melzer in the round two in Tokyo, blasted a total of twenty six aces and won seventy four percent of his service points in his today’s semi final match.
Rafael converted two of his four break point chances to improve his match record to 65-8 on the year.
In other action, the fifth seed Gael Monfils from France also advanced into the final of the Japan Open after hammering down Radek Stepanek from Czech Republic in a two setter clash on Saturday. The final match score was 6-3, 6-3.
The encounter was stretched to a time period of seventy minutes in Tokyo.
Monfils, as a result of this victory has successfully made his way into his eleventh ATP World Tour final with a career record of 2-8.
The twenty four year old, who prevented a single match point to dismiss his American tennis foe, Andy Roddick in the final eight battle, fired a total of five aces and converted three of his five break point chances on Saturday.
Monfils, improved to a match record of 34-15 on the year, despite being sidelined due to his wrist injury earlier in 2010. He also ended as finalist at the Mercedes Cup earlier in July in Stuttgart where he was downed by Albert
Montanes.
Radek had beaten Gaels on his way to the final of Brisbane International tennis even back in January. The thirty one year old dropped to a match record of 12-12 on the season.
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