The Czech Jiri Lehecka and the American Reilly Opelka They will meet in the final of the ATP tournament in Brisbane (Australia) after the ATP number ten, the Bulgarian, was eliminated in the semifinals. Grigor Dimitrov (due to retirement in the second set), and the French Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard (6-3 and 7-6), respectively.
Dimitrov, who had not dropped a set in his three previous rounds of the tournament (he faced German Yannick Hanfmann and Australians Aleksandar Vukic and Jordan Thompson), showed signs of weakness in the first set, where Lehecka, very solid from the back of the court, signed a partial victory of 6-4.
In the second set, more level, with the score at 4-4 and no cracks in either player’s game, Dimitrov had to leave the match after feeling some muscle strain. He was treated by the court’s physiotherapist, but ultimately had to retire permanently to the locker room.
Lehecka, winner of an ATP tournament (in January 2024 in Adelaide after defeating the British Jack Draper), seeks to achieve his second victory. To do so, they had to beat Opelka in the final, who defeated Mpetshi Perricard in the other semifinal.
The American tennis player, number 293 in the ATP, surprised the Frenchman, losing in one hour and twenty-five minutes. This Sunday, Opelka, at 27 years old, will fight for his fifth ATP singles title (he won in 2019 in New York, in 2020 in Delray Beach and in 2022 in Dallas and Houston). Lehecka, will be your last obstacle.
Source: La Verdad
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