By Chris Oddo | Friday, October 24, 2014
Tried-and-true warrior David Ferrer claimed his 600th match win in Valencia on Friday, boosting his London bid in the process.
Photo Source: Manuel Queimadelos Alonso/Getty
David Ferrer became the fourth active ATP player to reach the 600-win plateau with a 6-1, 6-2 beatdown of Brazil’s Thomaz Bellucci at the Valencia Open in Spain.
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Ferrer, the 22nd player in ATP history to reach the mark, is bidding to win his fourth Valencia title. He is the third Spaniard, along with Rafael Nadal and Manuel Orantes, to have cracked 600.
Ferrer also leapfrogged Milos Raonic in the race to London with the victory, and he can climb even further if he defeats Andy Murray in Saturday’s semifinals at Valencia.
Murray, who defeated Kevin Anderson in three sets, will meet Ferrer for the third time in three weeks. The pair have split their last two meetings, with Ferrer winning over Murray in three sets at the Shanghai Masters and Murray returning the favor last week at Vienna.
Ferrer can leapfrog Murray with a victory on Saturday. The Spaniard currently trails Murray by 110 points with 120 on offer to the victor tomorrow.
Notes, Numbers
Ferrer is currently 11 wins behind Lleyton Hewitt for 3rd on the active ATP list, and 41 behind Orantes for second on the all-time Spanish win list.
Here are the ATP’s top five active win leaders:
Federer: 986
Nadal: 706
Hewitt: 611
Ferrer: 600
Djokovic: 595