Santiago Giraldo and Thomaz Bellucci will be part of semifinal action on Friday in Geneva. Federico Delbonis and Joao Sousa are also seeking some extra momentum heading into Roland Garros.
Thomaz Bellucci vs. Santiago Giraldo
Giraldo and Bellucci will be squaring off for the seventh time in their careers at the ATP level and for the ninth time overall when they battle for a place in the final of the Geneva Open on Friday. The head-to-head series stands at 3-3 (4-4 overall), with Bellucci leading 3-2 on clay. They faced each other twice last season in their only two encounters since 2012. Bellucci prevailed on both occasions at home in Brazil; 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 in Rio de Janeiro and 4-6, 7-5, 6-3 one week later in Sau Paulo.
With the French Open less than a week away, Giraldo seems to be rounding into form at just the right time. The 67th-ranked Colombian had been 2-4 on European clay prior to his arrival in Nice but he ousted Ricardas Berankis, Mikhail Youzhny, and No. 2 seed Marin Cilic to reach the last four. Bellucci has advanced with victories over Marcos Baghdatis, Denis Istomin, and Albert Ramos-Vinolas. The world No. 60 is 15-5 in his last 20 matches (qualifying included) dating back to the start of the Miami Masters. But he does not have home-court advantage this time around and Giraldo may be tougher mentally at the end of what is sure to be a competitive showdown.
Pick: Giraldo in 3
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Federico Delbonis vs. Joao Sousa
Sousa has a new lease on life in Geneva after surviving a 6-2 deficit in a third-set tiebreaker against Pablo Andujar on Thursday. The world No. 50 won six consecutive points, all with daring aggression, to eventually overcome Andujar 6-4, 2-6, 7-6(6). Having preceded that triumph with straight-set defeats of Joao Souza and Jurgen Melzer, Sousa is now an even 13-13 for his 2015 campaign.
Up next for the Portuguese player is a second career meeting with Delbonis. They previously squared off two years ago on the clay courts of Buenos Aires, where Delbonis used home-court advantage to prevail 6-1, 6-4. The 74th-ranked Argentine, who finished runner-up at this tournament last season, booked is spot in the last four by taking out Teymuraz Gabashvili, Andrey Kuznetsov, and No. 1 seed Stan Wawrinka. Both men spent more than two hours on court in the quarters, so the fatigue factor should cancel out. A slight edge may go to Delbonis, who is 10-2 in his last 12 matches (qualifying and Challengers included) and always seems to thrive in Nice.
Pick: Delbonis in 3
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Both semis should be fun to watch…I like Giraldo in 3 and Delbonis in 3…amazing win by Sousa yesterday!