TANTALISING results were the story of the day at both the Antalya Open in Turkey and Delray Beach Open in the United States, with a couple of big winners in maiden finalist Sebastian Korda on home soil and the likes of Antalya competitors Alex de Minaur and Alexander Bublik, who are set to take the court against one another for the first time.

At Antalya, de Minaur had to overcome powerful Belgian David Goffin to proceed to the final, eventually coming away with the 6-4 3-6 6-2 victory in just under two hours. Despite his second set slip-up – which de Minaur admits put him on the back foot – the 21-year-old Australian stole away momentum in the third set to ensure he set up a huge final against Bublik.

“I knew it was going to be a tough match, and I’d be under pressure when serving,” De Minaur told ATPTour.com. “I had to reset and go back to my game plan and my strengths after I lost the second set. “I won some tough rallies in the third set and that helped me out for sure.”

For Bublik, it was a matter of getting past Frenchman Jeremy Chardy who, like Goffin, fought back to win the second set before falling short. While Bublik nursed an injury throughout, he utilised his powerful serve to snag the victory and push through the pain.

“I got injured in the middle of the match and considered pulling out, but I said myself, ‘Okay, I will give it a try,’” Bublik said. “I then served unbelievably, the best since Chengdu 2019. I served almost every serve full power and I was lucky to win the match.”

“Alex can beat any player on any given day and he has lots of firepower,” de Minaur said. “So I will need to rest and prepare well ahead of the final.”

ANTALYA OPEN SEMI FINALS RESULTS:

[4] Alex de Minaur (AUS) defeated [2] David Goffin (BEL) 6-4 3-6 6-2
[8] Alexander Bublik (KAZ) defeated Jeremy Chardy (FRA) 6-4 6-7 6-3

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Korda is set to have his work cut out for him when he takes on Hubert Hurkacz, with the Polish talent downing Korda’s compatriot Christian Harrison in straight sets. While Harrison had the jump on Hurkacz throughout, not allowing any easy points throughout the 7-6 6-4 contest, the more experienced player prevailed to end Harrison’s fairytale run on home soil and edge through to the final.

“I didn’t have many opportunities in the first set,” Hurkacz said post-match. “Then it came to a tiebreaker, and he started really well but then I won these really long rallies. That helped me and helped me get some momentum, so that was really crucial for the second set.”

“Very happy to win this match today,” Hurkacz said. “I mean, Christian played pretty amazing throughout the whole tournament. “He qualified here and had his best results on the ATP Tour. “Especially after all he came through, all the surgeries, it’s really great for him. “He played a really amazing match.”

For Korda, it was a commanding victory over Britain’s Cameron Norrie which sends him into his first final, with plenty riding on this encounter and the 20-year-old American doing his form this week justice. With a cool head and plenty of firepower, Korda came away with the 6-3 7-5 victory in just an hour and 22 minutes, utilising his pre-match warmup to work through lefthanded Norrie’s excellent backhand.

“I warmed up with my coach, he hits the flattest ball possible, so that worked out today,” Korda said. “[Norrie] has a super tricky game. “His backhand cross is world class, and his forehand once he gets it rolling cross it’s hard to defend. I’m super happy with the way I stayed aggressive and played the whole match.”

DELRAY BEACH OPEN SEMI FINALS RESULTS:

[4] Hubert Hurkacz (POL) defeated [Q] Christian Harrison (USA) 7-6 6-4
Sebastian Korda (USA) defeated Cameron Norrie (GBR) 6-3 7-5

Picture: SITA