Lopez to face Pouille in Stuttgart final
STUTTGART, Germany: Spaniard Feliciano Lopez reached his first final in almost a year when he beat local favourite Mischa Zverev 6-7(2), 7-6(4), 7-5 in the battle of the southpaws on Saturday to book a spot in the Stuttgart Open final.
The 35-year-old Lopez, who last made a final in August 2016, reached his fourth career grasscourt final as he prepares for Wimbledon and will face fourth seed Frenchman Lucas Pouille on Sunday.
Lopez can now win his third title on the surface to add to his two victories in Eastbourne in 2013 and 2014.
Pouille edged past fellow Frenchman Benoit Paire in a finely-balanced encounter where one single break in the entire match was enough for a 7-6(5) 7-5 victory.
On Friday, Tomas Berdych became the latest seeded player to exit the Stuttgart Open as Feliciano Lopez edged past the Czech third seed 6-7(4), 6-3, 6-4 to reach the last four.
The world number 14, who has reached only one final this year, joined top seeds Roger Federer and Grigor Dimitrov on the sidelines. Muller in Den Bosch final At Den Bosch, Luxembourg’s Gilles Muller beat second seed Alexander Zverev of Germany 7-6(5) 6-2 in Saturday’s first semifinal of the Den Bosch grasscourt tournament.
The 34-year-old Muller, seeded four, used all his experience against an opponent 14 years younger in romping through the second set.
In Sunday’s final he will meet either top seed Marin Cilic or Ivo Karlovic, both of Croatia.
After a tight first set, it was a disappointing ending for Zverev, currently ranked at a career-high number 10 in the world.