MADRID: Jan-Lennard Struff thought he was done at the Madrid Open when he lost to Aslan Karatsev in the final round of qualifying last week.
On Friday, though, the lucky loser will be facing Karatsev again with a spot in the final on the line. The big-serving Struff upset fourth-seeded Stefanos Tsitsipas 7-6 (5), 5-7, 6-3 on Thursday to become the third lucky loser to reach the semifinals of a Masters 1000 tournament.
The 33-year-old German had lost 6-4, 6-2 to Karatsev in qualifying but made it to the main draw after another player dropped out.
Struff had lost only five service games in the main draw and relinquished only one against Tsitsipas on his way to victory in the Spanish capital. “It feels amazing.
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