Nadal To Play Almagro In Acapulco SFs; Ferrer Sails Through

© MextenisDavid Ferrer has won 18 straight matches in Acapulco.

Second seed Rafael Nadal set a semi-final clash with third-seeded countryman Nicolas Almagro at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel on Thursday in Acapulco after defeating Leonardo Mayer 6-1, 7-5.

Nadal did not lose serve and won 63 per cent of his second serve return points to lock up the victory over the Argentine in one hour and 41 minutes. He improved to 2-0 against Mayer.

The Mallorcan is looking to capture the trophy in Acapulco for the second time, having triumphed on his event debut in 2005. Nadal is seeking his second title during the Latin American ‘Golden Swing’ after winning the Brasil Open 2013 in Sao Paulo (d. Nalbandian). He has never lost to Almagro in their previous eight meetings.

Almagro also sailed through with relative ease, putting together a solid performance on serve to beat eighth-seeded Horacio Zeballos 6-3, 6-4. Almagro, the 2008-09 titlist, won 83 per cent of his service points and fired 10 aces in the 70-minute victory. The 12th-ranked Almagro is bidding to lift his first trophy in 2013.

Three-time defending champion David Ferrer dismissed Paolo Lorenzi 6-3, 6-1 to reach the semi-finals and notch his 18th straight win at the event. After going down an early break, Ferrer quickly recovered to grab hold of the match, breaking Lorenzi five times. The top seed beat the Italian for the second time this season, following his quarter-final victory at the Qatar ExxonMobil Open in Doha.

World No. 4 Ferrer improved to 5-0 in tour-level quarter-finals this season. He successfully retained trophies at the Heineken Open in Auckland (d. Kohlschreiber) and Copa Claro in Buenos Aires (d. Wawrinka) and reached his second semi-final at the Australian Open (l. to Djokovic).

For a place in the final, Ferrer will face another player from Italy, Fabio Fognini. The World No. 43 defeated Santiago Giraldo 7-5, 6-4 to reach his first semi-final of the season. Fognini fell to Ferrer in the Buenos Aires quarter-finals last week and is looking to win his first ATP World Tour title. 

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