Unseeded Puerta reaches last four

14 April 2012

Mariano Puerta won the battle of the Argentines when he beat Guillermo Canas 6-2, 3-6, 1-6, 6-3, 6-4 to reach the French Open semifinals today.

Unseeded Puerta, who was appearing in his first grand slam quarter-final, reeled off the first five games of the match.

Ninth seed Canas battled back to lead before the rallies grew longer and more punishing, and Puerta's greater firepower enabled him to level the match.

Canas saved two match points when Puerta served at 5-4 in the decider victory was clinched at the third attempt when Canas netted a forehand after three hours 35 minutes.

Puerta's victory is a remarkable turnaround for the 26-year-old, whose career appeared to be in freefall when he served a nine-month suspension for failing a drugs test in 2003.

He made his comeback last July with a ranking in the 400s and spent the rest of the year playing on the Challenger circuit.

Now back on the main tour, he won a tournament in Casablanca and reached the final in his home city of Buenos Aires.

Waiting in the last four will be either Spaniard Tommy Robredo or Russia's Nikolay Davydenko, who also play their quarter-final today.

Robredo beat Australian Open champion Marat Safin in a five-set match in the previous round but said: "You've got to be careful with Davydenko. He's playing very good tennis."

Spanish teenager Rafael Nadal is counting on his energy to beat Roger Federer when they clash in the semi-finals on Friday.

The match marks Nadal's 19th birthday and he cannot wait to pit his strength against the Swiss world No1. "I'm feeling great," he said after beating compatriot David Ferrer 7-5, 6-2, 6-0.

Lindsay Davenport will hang on to her No1 ranking despite a disappointing show in Paris. The American, crushed 6-3, 6-2 by France's Mary Pierce in the quarter-finals, stays on top because Maria Sharapova was knocked out in straight sets by Justine Henin-Hardenne.

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Unseeded Puerta reaches last four

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