There will be one unsurprising semifinal on Saturday in Bogota and another that few could have expected heading into the week. Veteran seeds Ivo Karlovic and Radek Stepanek will be squaring off, while Bernard Tomic looks to maintain some much-needed momentum against Victor Estrella Burgos.
(8) Victor Estrella Burgos vs. (WC) Bernard Tomic
Tomic and Estrella Burgos will be going head-to-head for the second time in their careers and for the second time this season when they clash in the semifinals of the Claro Open Colombia on Saturday. They faced each other a few months ago in qualification for the Rome Masters, with Estrella Burgos winning that clay-court encounter 7-5, 6-3. The 33-year-old Dominican Republic native had won just two ATP-level matches in 2014 prior to this week, but he is through to his first-ever semifinal after beating Juan Ignacio Londero, Peter Polansky, and Richard Gasquet.
This is also Tomic’s best result in quite some time–since the first week of the year, in fact. The controversial Australian reached the Sydney final but then retired from an Australian Open first-round showdown against Rafael Nadal and promptly underwent a hip procedure. Tomic had a 4-8 record upon his return (including a loss in the shortest completed match in the history of the ATP Tour) heading into Bogota. The tide has turned this week, though, thanks to straight-set victories over Farrukh Dustov, Alejandro Falla, and Vasek Pospisil. Finally back in business and also playing on a hard court this time around, the story should be a much different one from what transpired in Rome.
Pick: Tomic in 2
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(4) Radek Stepanek vs. (2) Ivo Karlovic
Stepanek and Karlovic will be squaring off for the sixth time in their careers and for the second time this season. The head-to-head series stands at 4-1 in Stepanek’s favor after he most recently prevailed 6-1, 6-2 a few months ago on the clay courts of Monte-Carlo. The 39th-ranked Czech started the year slowly but is rounding into form. His two ATP semifinals in 2014 have now come in his last three events: Queen’s Club and this week in Bogota. Stepanek advanced to the last four by taking out Guido Pella and Alejandro Gonzalez in straight sets.
Karlovic, meanwhile, is playing some of the best tennis of his life at 35 years old (the same age as Stepanek). The 29th-ranked Croat reached the Dusseldorf final, upset Grigor Dimitrov at the French Open, and finished runner-up to Lleyton Hewitt last week in Newport. So far in Bogota, the defending champion has maintained his fine form by beating Dudi Sela and Jimmy Wang in straight sets. Karlovic has to like the court and conditions at this event, but he has played a ton of recent tennis and may be wearing down. He already withdrew from next week’s tournament in Atlanta. Stepanek has tamed the Karlovic serve in the past and he should be able to do it again.
Pick: Stepanek in 3
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