After taking out the two 2012 Hamburg finalists, Nicolas Almagro and Fabio Fognini will face each other on Saturday. The winner will go up against either Roger Federer or Federico Delbonis for the title.
Nicolas Almagro and Fabio Fognini will be squaring off for the fifth time in their careers when they clash in the semifinals of the German Tennis Championships on Saturday.
Almagro leads the head-to-head series 3-1, including 2-1 on clay. However, they have not faced each other since 2009. The Spaniard scored a 6-2, 7-5, 6-0 Australian Open victory near the beginning of that season before Fognini got some revenge by prevailing 6-4, 7-6(3) a few months later on the clay courts of Bucharest.
Both men are in stellar form, which is nothing new for Almagro. The world No. 15 boasts a 32-15 record for the year, which features runner-up performances in Houston and Barcelona. So far in Hamburg, Almagro has dismissed Tobias Kamke, Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, and defending champion Juan Monaco–losing only one set to Monaco in the process.
For Fognini, the outstanding play has come suddenly and just about out of nowhere. Prior to Stuttgart last week, his only particularly notable results of 2013 were semifinals in Acapulco and Monte-Carlo. Now, though, the 25th-ranked Italian is riding an eight-match winning streak. Fognini captured his first career ATP title in Stuttgart and he booked his spot in the Hamburg semis thanks to straight-set scalps of Albert Ramos, Marcel Granollers, and Tommy Haas.
“I’m really feeling confident,” Fognini said after beating Haas 6-2, 6-4 for the second time in as many weeks. “I played another solid match. My game is working really well at the moment, so physically and mentally I’m feeling really good.”
The 12th seed may be playing the best and most inspired tennis of his career right now, but he is always a candidate to go off the rails at any moment. While Almagro can be shaky at times, as well, his results have been extremely consistent. In a match that is sure to feature incredible shot-making, Almagro’s one-handed backhand and ability to win free points on serve in pressure situations could be the difference.
Pick: Almagro in 3
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