Querrey, Ram to play in semifinal
Their wins guarantee that an American will be in the Farmers Classic final at L.A.
Using his 6-foot-6 frame to power one blistering serve after another, Sam Querrey breezed past Xavier Malisse, 6-2, 3-1, before the Belgian retired because of a knee injury Friday night in the Farmers Classic at UCLA’s L.A. Tennis Center.
Querrey reached the semifinals by extending his Farmers Classic winning streak to 11, a stretch that dates to a first-round loss to Mardy Fish in 2007. He became the sixth player in tournament history to win back-to-back championships in 2009-10, but was absent in 2011 because of an elbow injury.
“It feels great,” said Querrey of advancing. “It was a little unfortunate for Xavier tonight, but I feel like I played well in the set-and-a-half we got done there.”
Querrey, who improved to 3-0 in his career against Malisse, graduated from high school in Thousand Oaks in 2006. He was often the subject of chants and cheers as the hometown favorite Friday night.
“I just love playing in front of my friends and family out here. I’m really comfortable out here and look forward to it every year,” he said.
Querrey will face Rajeev Ram in the semifinals Saturday at 7 p.m. Ram defeated third-seeded Leonardo Mayer in a 7-6 (3), 6-3 upset Friday afternoon. Ram won the final five games of the match after falling behind 3-1in the second set.
With Querrey and Ram facing off in the semifinals, an American is guaranteed a berth in the Farmers Classic championship for the sixth consecutive year.
“Hopefully I serve well and return well,” Querrey said. “He’s got a great serve. He plays a little different with serve and volley, a lot of backhand slices, so I’ll be patient and hopefully return his serve.”
Marinko Matosevic will play Ricardas Berankis in the other semifinal Saturday. The sixth-seeded Matosevic beat Michael Russell, 6-2, 6-3, and Berankis ousted fourth-seeded Nicolas Mahut, 6-4, 6-4. Berankis, appearing in his first ATP tour semifinal, is the first qualifier to make it this deep into the Farmers Classic since Carsten Ball lost to Querrey in the 2009 final.