Marc-Andrea Huesler will play in his second ATP Tour semi-final for the year after reaching the Top Four at Sofia Open 2022. The Swiss reached the last 4 of the Sofia Open by beating Pole Kamil Majchrzak 6:7 (4), 7:6 (6), 6:3 at the Arena Armeec Sofia on Friday.
In the second set Majchrzak missed two consecutive match balls and gave chance to his Swiss opponent to make a great come-back and to win.
Huesler advanced to the semi-finals of an ATP Tour event for the third time in his career and second time this year after playing in Top 4 at Winston-Salem Open in August. Starting from the qualifiers, he had a great run in the USA but was stopped by Laslo Djere on his way to the final,
Huesler, ranked No 95, will face the winner of the match between German qualifier Jan-Lennard Struff and Italian Lorenzo Musetti, the No 4 seed, next.
The 26-year-old won against French qualifier Geoffrey Blancaneaux (6:4, 6:4) and Spaniard Pablo Carreno Busta, the second seed (6:3, 3:6, 6:2) earlier in the tournament.
In 2019 Huesler was stopped in the second round after three wins in a row by the future champion Jannik Sinner.
The No. 4 seed Lorenzo Musetti reached the semi-finals too after winning in straight set to Jan-Lennard Struff (Germany) – 7:6 (3), 6:1 after 75 minutes. Thus the Italian #NextGenATP star ended the German’s streak of four straight victories in the tournament.
The 32-year-old Struff started the match strongly and after an early break took a 3-0 game lead. Musetti gradually raised his game and managed to rebreak soon. Next the 20-year-old Musetti dominated on the court and reached the semis.
“Tough match, Struff served very well, especially in the first set. He was very aggressive and steady from the baseline. I had to change something to be successful, and that’s exactly what I did. I played one of my best indoor hard court matches ever,” Musetti said in the on-court interview.
The 20-year-old showcased a combination of quality and grit, rallying from a break down in the first set before firing an array of winners in the second set to seal his victory after 77 minutes.
Musetti, world number 30, who lifted his maiden tour-level trophy in Hamburg in July, will face the new Switzerland’s first racket Marc-Andrea Hüssler in the semi-finals.
Asked if he could go all the way in Sofia, Musetti expressed optimism: “Tomorrow will be difficult, I hope to win. It will be great to play in the final against Jannik (Sinner).”
