Marin Cilic saves MPs against Yasutaka Uchiyama, advances to Hangzhou SFs | ATP Tour
Matching Report
Cilic saves MPs against Uchiyama, advances to Hangzhou SFs
Croatia face Nakashima next
September 22, 2024
WILLIAM WEST/AFP via Getty Images
Cilic advanced to his 67th Tour-level semifinal.
Written by Krishna Gowda
Can Marin Cilic complete his fairytale return to the ATP Tour following his return from injury?
Former US Open champion Cilic came back from the brink of defeat, saving two points to survive Yasutaka Uchiyama 6-2, 6-7 (4), 7-6 (5) on Sunday to advance to the semifinals of the Hangzhou Open. .
The Croatian was working at 5-6, 15/40 down in the final set, but rallied to win a break and down Uchiyama, who upset top seed Holger Rune on Saturday. The 35-year-old Cilic saved eight of his nine break points to seal the 67th Tour-level semifinal of his career and take his Lexus ATP Head2Head record against Uchiyama to 2-0.
Cilic is playing as a wildcard in his first ATP Tour event since Buenos Aires in February, after being sidelined by a knee injury for several months. Advancing to the semifinals means Cilic is one step closer to securing a 21st ATP Tour title and completing a complete comeback.
Mar-INCREDIBLE! 😮@cilic_marin save TWO match points to secure a place in the semi-finals@HangzhouOpen | #HangzhouOpen pic.twitter.com/rZY5v5XNJ0
– ATP Tour (@atptour) September 22, 2024
“I think today’s match was at a very high level for both of us,” said Cilic in his post-match interview. “In the second set he played very well, he worked hard under pressure and worked well until the end of the match.
“For me, it was an amazing, great comeback to win that game 5-3 when he worked for the game and he was happy to win.”
The former No. 3 in the PIF ATP Rankings will meet fourth seed Brandon Nakashima in the semifinals. Nakashima battled Australia’s Rinky Hijikata, winning 7-5, 6-3 to reach his sixth ATP Tour semifinal.
The American, who is ranked as high as No. 39 in the PIF ATP Rankings, converted all three of his break opportunities to seal the match in 89 minutes. Nakashima also won 81 percent of his first points, according to Infosys ATP Stats, to extend his Lexus ATP Head2Head record against Hijikata to 2-0.
“[It was a] I’m very close, I started slow and went down with a break in the morning,” said Nakashima after the match. “But I raised my level when I needed it most in the first set and I was able to ride a little bit and build some confidence”.
Home hope Buyunchaokete advanced to his first ATP Tour semi-final with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Mikhail Kukushkin.
The Chinese wild card beat 17 winners to claim victory in one hour, 23 minutes. The 22-year-old converted four of his seven break points to become the fifth Chinese player to reach the last four at an ATP Tour event.
World No. 124 will face his teammate Zhizhen Zhang or the Spaniard Roberto Carballes Baena in the semi finals.
