Barcelona Open: Tsitsipas fends off scare to reach the semis

Stefanos Tsitsipas survived a major scare against Facundo Diaz Acosta on Friday at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell, where he saved two match points to earn a dramatic 4-6, 6-3, 7-6(8) win.

“I was coming close [to losing] at certain moments in the match. It seemed like a mountain,” Tsitsipas said. “I reminded myself that I have a headband that I wear here that has a mountain and that I need to climb it, so it kept me going.

“It was difficult. It was extremely difficult to sustain the same level throughout the entire match and I think he played incredible. I think he left everything out there. He is a good clay-court player. He has a title on the ATP Tour for a reason and today it was a level he was able to bring out on the court that made it quite obvious.”

Tsitsipas is chasing his second title of the season, having captured his third Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters crown last week. He is up one spot to No. 7 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings.

The 25-year-old, who is a three-time finalist in Barcelona, holds a 28-2 record against players ranked outside the Top 20 in the PIF ATP Rankings on clay since the start of 2022. He will look to maintain that record when he meets No. 36 Arthur Fils or No. 59 Dusan Lajovic in the semi-finals on Saturday.