French showman Gael Monfils castigated a pesky net cord and then finally brushed off James Blake on Thursday night to progress through to the Brisbane International semifinals.
Monfils fought back from a set down to topple the popular American 3-6 6-3 6-4 in a highly entertaining quarterfinal at Pat Rafter Arena.
The third seed’s victory has set up an intriguing clash with defending champion Radek Stepanek, who easily overcame another unseeded American in Wayne Odesnik, on Saturday.
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It took Monfils four match-points to finally sink Blake, after breaking him in the seventh game of the deciding set.
Blake survived the third match point with a fortunate forehand that clipped the net cord and gave the world No.13 no chance.
One of the characters of men’s tennis, Monfils immediately walked to the net and brushed the cord before waving his finger at it and telling it not to hurt him again, leaving the Brisbane crowd in stitches.
Blake’s luck didn’t last much longer as Monfils, who served 13 aces for the match, ended his tournament with the next two points.
Blake had three more break-point chances in the match but Monfils saved seven of his nine.