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7/16/09 7:01 PM | Ricky Dimon
Fernando Verdasco survives Daniel Koellerer in an intense match that lasts over three hours on Thursday at the Swedish Open. He is joined in the quarterfinals by fellow Spaniard Nicolas Almagro.
(1) Fernando Verdasco d. Daniel Koellerer 6-7(1), 6-2, 7-5
A high-spirited and extremely entertaining marathon of a match saw Verdasco outlast Koellerer in three hours and nine minutes on Thursday to reach the quarterfinals of the Catella Swedish Open. The two players split sets before things really got interesting. Koellerer took the first by dominating a tiebreaker after four breaks of serve were exchanged (two each) during the set. Verdasco bounced back to win the second with relative ease, breaking twice more and saving all four of the break points he faced.
As the final set dragged on, both players were struggling physically but Koellerer had the worst of it due to leg cramps. The volatile Austrian constantly threw his racket in disgust and berated chair umpire Mohamad Layhani for not allowing him to taking injury timeouts in the middle of games, but Koellerer stayed strong on the court. He even earned a match point with his opponent serving at 4-5, ad-out, but Verdasco saved it with a huge inside-out forehand. Bastad's No. 1 seed then broke easily at 5-5, with Koellerer collapsing to the dirt in pain at the end of the game. A routine service hold to love finally put Verdasco in the quarters, where the ninth-ranked Spaniard will face either Juan Monaco or Victor Crivoi.
(5) Nicolas Almagro d. (Q) Potito Starace 2-6, 6-1, 6-1
Despite going three sets, Almagro needed just one hour and 21 minutes to blow past Starace in the Bastad second round on Thursday. In a match that featured bizarre momentum swings, Almagro broke serve in the second game to take a quick 2-0 lead. The 41st-ranked Spaniard then promptly lost the next six games to throw away the opening frame of play without much of a fight.
From there, however, it was all Alamgro. He lost only four points in his next four service games and allowed Starace just 12 points--and one game--in the second set. Almagro was just as dominant in the final set, breaking three times and never facing a break point on his own serve. His third break of the set and sixth of the match finished Starace off in style. Almagro will take on No. 2 seed Robin Soderling for a spot in the semifinals on Friday.
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