WASHINGTON -- No. 1 seed Gael Monfils made his second semifinal in two appearances at the Legg Mason Tennis Classic with a win over No. 6 seed Janko Tipsarevic, 6-4, 6-4.
ATP Washington Quarterfinals Results: Top Seed Gael Monfils Dispatches Janko Tipsarevic, Advances To Semifinals
A fairly sloppy match due to the two both having played two matches Thursday, Monfils’ speed and retrieving ability frustrated Tipsarevic often, inducing the Serb into hitting a total of 32 unforced errors in the two sets.
Though the tired Monfils did not make an especially high percentage of first serves in (nor did Tipsarevic) Monfils served by far the best he has all tournament, winning all 16 points on his first serve in the second set.
The strong effort on serve may have been in anticipation of his upcoming semifinal with big-serving American John Isner, a rematch of their classic 2007 semifinal which Isner had recalled so fondly hours earlier.
Even though he lost the match, Monfils had similarly warm memories of what he remembered about that match.
Q: What do you remember about that 2007 match against Isner here?
Gael Monfils: The crowd. The crowd was fantastic. I mean, it is a very good memory, even though I lost it. I think I played a great match. It’s tough to play against John. We respect each other, both that match and this match. But great memories.
* * *
Q:What is different going into a match like tomorrow? You seem like a player who gets up for the big stage, for the big crowd--
Gael Monfils: Yeah it will be fun tomorrow, for sure. John is an entertainer, we are in the States. In the States, the crowd--it’s on! It’s living the match. And like I said, it’s a good mix, his game and my game. He’s like a pure attacker, will go to the net, he will volley. I will run, slide, pass him. (laughs) Love it!
With Monfils completing the final four, the semifinal schedule is now set:
Donald Young (United States) vs. Radek Stepanek (Czech Republic) (3 pm, ESPN2)
Gael Monfils (France) [1] vs. John Isner (United States) [11] (7 pm, Tennis Channel)
Stay tuned to SB Nation’s coverage of the 2011 US Open Series at SBNation.com as well as on Twitter, @DailyForehand .
See More:
