German Philipp Kohlschreiber upset second seed Nicolas Almagro in the quarter-finals of the ATP event in Auckland with a straight sets 7-6 (7-5), 6-4 victory over the Spaniard.
In a tense match, the sole service break came in the final game of the second set when Almagro gifted the match-winning point with a double fault.
Eighth-seed Kohlschreiber heads into a semi-final encounter with unseeded Olivier Rochus of Belgium who beat Frenchman Benoit Paire in a marathon three-set encounter 6-3, 6-7 (5-7), 7-6 (7-4).
The other quarter-finals between Spaniards Fernando Verdasco and Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, and Spanish top-seed David Ferrer and Alejandro Falla of Colombia were on hold because of evening rain.
Kohlschreiber has now beaten Almagro in four of their seven clashes but conceded luck was on his side against the world number 10 this time.
Rochus and Paire took two hours and 28 minutes to complete their quarter-final with the match further disrupted for two and-a-half hours by rain.
Paire, who had enjoyed wins over former world number one Juan Carlos Ferrero and fourth seed Juan Ignacio Chela earlier in the week, found his power game was no match for the precision placements of Rochus on the key points.
AFP
Tags: tennis, sport, new-zealand First posted January 12, 2012 20:03:07
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