Ernests Gulbis is turning back the clock at the Intrum Stockholm Open. The roller-coaster ride that is Gulbis’ career is suddenly trending upward again and has him through to his first ATP title match in more than four years. The 145th-ranked Latvian continued this week’s run run on Saturday afternoon with a 1-6, 6-3, 6-3 upset of No. 1 seed John Isner.
Gulbis recovered from a dreadful opening set by fighting off the only break point he faced during the second and surrendering just six total service points in the decider. Two breaks of his own in the third were more than enough to send the former world No. 10 across the finish line in one hour and 48 minutes.
“I was fighting for every point,” said Gulbis, who will face Stefanos Tsitsipas for the winner’s trophy on Sunday. “I think I returned a lot smarter in the second and third set.
“I like the way I am playing now; I like the way I am feeling, the way I am hitting and moving. If I play like this, I can beat anybody. I can give anybody trouble, for sure, so it is not going to be an easy match for [Tsitsipas] tomorrow. It is probably not going to be an easy match in general.”
Highlights:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJZOkEpD4Qs
Tsitsipas earned a place in his third career ATP final–and third of the season–by cruising past Fabio Fognini 6-3, 6-2. The 20-year-old Greek saved all four of Fognini’s break points to prevail in one hour and 16 minutes.
“It was to stay patient,” Tsitsipas said when asked about the key to the match. “[Fabio] was going for shots and the beginning of the match was really tough…. I was patient in the rallies. That is how I got the win today.”
Whereas Tsitsipas is bidding for his first-ever ATP title, Gulbis is a perfect 6-0 lifetime in finals.
Meanwhile, both Isner and Fognini remain outside the cut line in the 2018 race to the Nitto ATP Finals. Isner, however, passed Kei Nishikori for the No. 9 spot with his semifinal showing in Stockholm and would currently get into London with a withdrawal from either Juan Martin Del Potro or Rafael Nadal.
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nice on, Ernie