07.06.2018 13:22:03 | Austrian Gerald Melzer (111th ATP) fought for the first place in the semis against Italian Caruso (228th ATP). The match saw many long and patient rallies from the very beginning. Those who thought that Melzer would have the upper hand were wrong. The Italian was very tough but the Austrian’s time came after fifty minutes even though Italian’s double fault helped him. Melzer won 6:4.
The Austrian is twenty eight and his best ATP ranking has been No. 76 so far. And Caruso? He is by two years younger and his maximum has been the 156th place. However, nobody would tell the difference in ranking. Both players played perfect shots from the base line and the match was only decided by errors. There were not many of them, but they occurred at the right time… In the second set, Caruso lost his serve and the Austrian took the lead to 3:1, 5:2. Caruso reduced the lead to 4:5, but Melzer expertly controlled the end of the match. He won the last set 6:4 and advanced to the semis in which he will meet the winner of the Ymer – Munar match.
The difference between Caruso and Melzer in ATP rankings is more than a hundred places. Did the Austrian expect such a tight match? “Of course, every player from the top two hundred can play tennis. There are no great differences. We could see that Marco Cecchinato is No. 72 in the world is playing the semis in Paris. The top is really very tight.“ Did Melzer expect such long rallies in the match? “I knew he played hard shots from the base line. I didn’t feel the shots as I would’ve liked today, but I served better which decided the match.“ In the next round, Gerald Melzer will meet Ymer or Munar. What does he expect from them? “They are both young players. I played Munar once last year and I won in three sets. However, it was a tough match. They both qualified to Grand Slam and advanced to the second round. Every match is going to be tough at this tournament.“
