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  • Umag semifinal preview

    7/19/08 5:28 AM | Cheryl Murray
    - Igor Andreev and Fernando Verdasco take the court on Saturday in a bid to make the finals on Sunday.

    Igor Andreev vs. Maximo Gonzalez

    Most expected this semifinal to include Ivan Ljubicic, but the big-serving Croat was forced to withdraw in the second round with an injury. In his place is the Argentine Maximo Gonzalez, whose ATP record for 2008 coming into Umag was 1-3. A semifinal is a fantastic result for Gonzalez, but likely this will be where it ends. Igor Andreev has been on fire since Wimbledon. He made the final in Gstaad, where he lost to Romanian Victor Hanescu. Andreev is ranked a steady 30 in the world and he has a tough game on clay. Andreev should be able to dispatch of the Argentine with little fuss. Andreev in straight sets.

    Fabio Fognini vs. Fernando Verdasco

    Tournament number one seed Fernando Verdasco comes into Umag off a surprisingly impressive grass court season. He kicked off the season with a second round loss at the Queen’s Club, but followed that result with an appearance in the final in Nottingham. To top off the short season, he made the round of 16 at Wimbledon. This recent success has seen the Spaniard’s ranking climb 16 spots since April. Despite the good grass results, Verdasco is still better known for his game on the dirt.

    Fabio Fognini is no slouch on clay himself. He is at a near career high ranking of 73. He recently won the Challenger tournament in Turin, Italy and had a good semifinal result on clay in Warsaw back in June. Another semifinal appearance in Umag is probably the best he can expect. When he’s playing well, Verdasco has too much game for the Italian. Verdasco in three.

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