Bangkok, Thailand (Sports Network) - Frenchmen Gilles Simon and Richard
Gasquet were semifinal winners Saturday at the $551,000 Thailand Open tennis
event.
Simon, the 2009 Bangkok champion, reached his second final of the year and
13th of his career with a 6-4, 6-4 victory over top seed Janko Tipsarevic. The
fourth-seeded Simon improved to 5-1 lifetime against the Serbian, including
4-0 on hardcourts.
The 27-year-old Simon captured his 10th career title in Bucharest in late
April.
Gasquet, meanwhile, came within two points of losing to seventh-seeded Finn
Jarkko Nieminen in straight sets, but the second seed recovered to beat the
2010 Bangkok runner-up 3-6, 7-5, 6-2.
A two-time finalist this year, Gasquet will be vying for his seventh career
title. He is 6-10 overall in finals and heads into Sunday's match with a
significant edge, having won all five previous ATP Tour-level meetings against
his countryman.
The 2012 winner of this tournament will collect $99,465.
The Sports Network