Michelsen reaches Newport SFs, surges to 2nd in Jeddah Race

#NextGenATP Alex Michelsen is enjoying deja vu at the Infosys Hall of Fame Open, where he is into his second tour-level semi-final after defeating Aleksandar Kovacevic 6-4, 6-4 on Thursday.

A year on since his dream run in Newport, reaching the final in just his second ATP Tour event, the 19-year-old American is aiming to go one step further to claim his maiden tour-level title.

Michelsen was squeaky clean from the baseline and showed soft hands up at the net to follow yesterday’s victory against 2022 champion Maxime Cressy. The third-youngest player in the Top 100 of the PIF ATP Rankings, Michelsen’s lone break of serve in each set was enough to secure a one-hour, 25-minute victory.

“I played two pretty ridiculous return games, like I did against Cressy. It’s like deja vu, two four-and-four matches. Super happy with the win,” said Michelsen, who leads 2-0 in his Lexus ATP Head2Head series with Kovacevic, having also beaten the 25-year-old in Geneva this year.

Following his quarter-final win, the third seed is up two places to second in the PIF ATP Live Race To Jeddah. The California native is seeking a return trip to the 20-and-under Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF, which runs from 18-22 December in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Michelsen next faces Reilly Opelka, who downed Mackenzie McDonald 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 after firing 27 aces, according to Infosys ATP Stats.

Opelka, competing in his first ATP Tour event since 2022 Washington, dropped just six points behind his first serve in what was his third consecutive deciding-set win. The former World No. 17, currently No. 1188 in the PIF ATP Rankings, is the lowest-ranked semi-finalist in the ATP Tour era (since 1990).

In other Newport action, second seed Marcos Giron polished off a 4-6, 7-5, 6-4 victory against Benoit Paire to reach the quarter-finals. Giron and Paire’s second-round match was suspended due to darkness Wednesday with the Frenchman leading 6-4, 1-0. Giron, 30, tallied five consecutive games from 1-4 in the third set to survive. The American is now tied at his career-high No. 44 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings.

Did You Know?
Six Americans reached the Newport quarter-finals, marking the most players from one nation in an ATP Tour quarter-final round since seven Frenchmen did so in 2009 (Lyon). It marks the most Americans in an ATP Tour quarter-final round since 2008 Delray Beach (six).