SHANGHAI, OCT 16 (IANS): Rafael Jodar outlasted Casper Ruud on Friday to earn his fourth consecutive victory from a set down at the ATP Masters 1000 event.
Jodar broke Ruud’s serve five times across the second and third sets to seal 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 win in two hours and 20 minutes and become the youngest semi-finalist in tournament history. With his win, Jodar also boosted his chances of qualifying for the ATP Finals in his first full season on the ATP Tour. The Spaniard has jumped above Novak Djokovic and Alex de Minaur into ninth in the ATP Live Race to Turin.
Ruud broke in the 10th game to clinch the opening set, and then reclaimed an early break to level the second set at 2-2. Jodar then gradually began to dictate proceedings.
After breaking for 5-4 and then serving out the second set to love, Jodar broke Ruud’s serve three times in the decider to complete an impressive victory against the World No. 24. He is now 10-2 against Top-30 opponents since the start of July.
The Spaniard will next take on Daniil Medvedev, who is just above him in the live race, or Tommy Paul for a spot in the championship match. With Jodar’s compatriot Alejandro Davidovich Fokina also into the semifinal, Jodar’s victory marks just the fifth time since 2014 that multiple Spaniards have reached the semi-finals at the same Masters 1000 event, ATP reports.
Earlier in the tournament, Jodar defeated Botic van de Zandschulp 6-7(4), 6-4, 6-2 in two hours and 30 minutes to become the second-youngest Shanghai quarter-finalist.
Jakub Mensik is the youngest quarterfinalist in the history of the Shanghai Masters, when he reached his first ATP Masters 1000 quarterfinal at the 2024 Shanghai Masters at age 19.
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