Washington (United States) (AFP) – Defending champion Alex de Minaur and second-seeded Ben Shelton were bounced out of the Washington Open on Friday as upsets marked the quarter-finals of the combined ATP and WTA event. Top-seeded Aussie de Minaur was left to rue his missed chances in a 7-6 (7/5), 6-4 loss to 33rd-ranked American Brandon Nakashima. Chile’s 30th-ranked Alejandro Tabilo recovered an early break in the third set to beat US home favorite Shelton 4-6, 7-5, 6-4.
Women’s top seed Jessica Pegula and third-seeded Naomi Osaka made it safely into the semi-finals, but second-seeded Ukrainian Elina Svitolina was sent packing by rising Philippines star Alexandra Eala. Nakashima, chasing his first ATP 500-level title, avenged a loss to de Minaur in last year’s Washington quarter-finals and followed up a win over the Aussie at Queen’s Club in London this year.
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“He came out with some great serving; a lot of first serves,” de Minaur said. “I played at a high level. I just threw in two pretty awful games on my serve. It’s a little bit frustrating, but you live and you learn.” Nakashima booked a Saturday all-American semi-final against 10th-ranked Taylor Fritz, who saved a match point in a 6-1, 3-6, 7-6 (8/6) victory over compatriot Alex Michelsen. Nakashima, whose only ATP title came at San Diego in 2022, saved six of the seven break points he faced and fired 10 aces — including one to take the first set.
“He’s a very quick and explosive player,” Nakashima said. “I knew I had to serve well at the crucial moments and try to be aggressive.” Tabilo needed two hours and 23 minutes to subdue the hard-hitting Shelton, pulling out an array of shots that included an impressive “tweener” lob and a string of crisp volleys. He saved four break points in the second set and broke Shelton in the 12th game to force the third. After Shelton broke for a 3-2 lead, Tabilo broke back immediately to keep the pressure on.
He was rewarded for his perseverance with a break in the final game, an increasingly frustrated Shelton firing a forehand into the net on match point. Tabilo next faces 19-year-old Spaniard Rafael Jodar, who ousted fourth-seeded Italian Lorenzo Musetti 1-6, 6-1, 6-4. By reaching his third semi-final of the season, Jodar is assured of breaking into the top 20 in the world rankings for the first time.
World number three Pegula, who won her first WTA title at Washington in 2019, eliminated 20th-ranked Anna Kalinskaya 6-3, 7-5, to reach her sixth WTA semi-final of the year. The American will play for a berth in the final against fourth-seed Diana Shnaider, who beat Russian compatriot Liudmila Samsonova 6-3, 6-4.
Japan’s third-seeded Osaka, a four-time Grand Slam winner, rallied to eliminate Italy’s Elisabetta Cocciaretto 4-6, 6-4, 6-3. World number 13 Osaka will face Eala, who beat Svitolina 6-3, 6-4. Eala, who ousted seventh-seeded defending champion Leylah Fernandez in the second round, posted her sixth win of the season over a top-10 player and reached her third semi-final of the year.
© 2024 AFP
