dal through to Argenti Open semis

Buenos Aires, Feb 13: Spanish tennis star and World No.5 Rafael dal has advanced to the semi-fils of the Argenti Open, beating Italy’s Paolo Lorenzi 7-6(3), 6-2.

Without showing his best, the former World No.1 displayed his domince in the first set tie-break to beat an in-form Lorenzi on Friday, reports Xinhua.

In the second set, dal turned on the pressure and after breaking the Italian in the third game, took the set and match in broiling conditions where the mercury topped 40 degrees Celsius.

“The conditions were extreme and cost me a bit. My stomach is in a little bit of pain,” said dal while thanking the Argentinean crowd for their support.

In the semi-fil, dal will face Australia’s Dominic Thiem, who saw off Serbia’s Dusan Lajovic in the quarter-fil. IANS