March 28, 2013 | By Long Island Tennis Magazine Staff
Photo credit: Kenneth B. Goldberg
Third-seeded David Ferrer advanced to his third semifinal appearance at the Sony Open Tennis in Miami, winning over the unseeded Jurgen Melzer 4-6, 6-3, 6-0. Ferrer seeks his second ATP World Tour Masters 1000 trophy, having defeated Jerzy Janowicz in Paris this past November. In the semis, Ferrer will face Tommy Haas who was victorious over the number 11 seed, Gilles Simon, 6-3, 6-1. Ferrer has won both of the pair’s previous clashes, but the two haven’t faced each other since 2008 in Dubai.
“I was a little bit nervous in the first set and part of the second,” said Ferrer. “But I tried to fight every point, to be focused and I had a good feeling in the final of the second set and of course in the third one.”
Haas is through to the last four at an ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournament for the first time since 2006 in Paris. He is aiming to win his first Masters 1000 trophy since 2001, when he captured the crown on home soil in Stuttgart.
“I certainly enjoy these little stats sometimes,” Haas said. “I thought another German might have reached the semis. So it’s obviously nice.”
