Marco Cecchinato and Robin Haase marched into the final four in Umag on Friday, recording straight sets victories that made them the lone seeds remaining in Croatia.
Haase, the No. 6 seed, technically scored a mild upset with his 6-3, 7-6 win over defending champion Andrey Rublev. The fourth seeded Russian could not match the restrained power the Dutchman displayed, saving six of seven break points and slamming nine aces.
Haase secured the only first set break early, when Rublev fell apart on serve and managed only a limp slice into the net at 0-40. Haase had break points in each of Rublev’s next two service games, then three set points with a 0-40 lead at 2-5, but the Russian held on.
That nearly cost the Dutchman, who faced break point when serving for the set but then hit a huge serve on a set point to edge in front. He lost a break lead in the second set, but forced a loose Rublev backhand on a nearly minute-long rally in the tiebreak, and closed out the 20-year-old with an ace on his fourth match point.
Cecchinato had an easier time, rolling through Laslo Djere 6-4, 6-1 in a match that ended late in the evening. The No. 3 seed trailed by a break midway through the first set, then proceeded to win nine straight games — leveling the first set, then winning it, then racing to a 5-0 lead — en route to the swift victory.
The Italian played a ruthlessly efficient game, winning four of five break points and losing just three points on his second serve. He won 11 straight points at one time and tallied more points on Djere’s serve than the Serbian himself. The French Open semifinalist looked much crisper than he did a round ago, when he won two lengthy sets to come from behind and beat Jiri Vesely.
Cecchinato will meet Guido Pella, who ground out a 7-6, 7-5 win over Dusan Lajovic in close to two hours. The Argentine faced just two break points despite unspectacular serving performances from both players; the two combined for an even six aces to six double faults.
Pella led 4-0 in the opening set tiebreaker and held on to jump in front, converting his first set point. He then had three match points on his serve at 5-3 in the second set; after missing each of those opportunities to convert, he did so on Lajovic’s serve three games later.
Another Argentine, qualifier Marco Trungelliti, completed the semifinal field with a 6-1, 6-4 win over Evgeny Donskoy. The world No. 188 rolled to his fifth straight win in Umag, winning the first five games and crisply securing the only break he needed in the second set.
