By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Saturday June 22, 2019
Gilles Simon is one match from becoming France's first Open Era champion at Queen's Club.
Photo Source: TPN/Getty
Less than 24 hours after playing the longest match in Queen’s Club history (3:20 v Nicolas Mahut), Gilles Simon was at it again on Saturday at the Fever-Tree Championships.
This time the Frenchman dueled with rising Russian Daniil Medvedev and came out on top 6-7(4) 6-4 6-3 in 2:38 minutes to reach his first final of 2019.
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Simon is into his 22nd ATP final (14-7) and will face 2017 champion Feliciano Lopez for the title.
The 37-year-old Lopez rallied past 18-year-old Felix Auger-Aliassime, 6-7 (3), 6-3, 6-4.
The 113th-ranked Lopez has fought back from a set down in all three wins this week, beating Marton Fucsovics in his opener, toppling sixth-seeded Canadian Milos Raonic in the quarterfinals and withstanding 25 aces from Stuttgart finalist Auger-Aliassime today.
In a match that was full of double-digit-stroke rallies, Simon was the fitter player and it showed in the final set as Medvedev struggled with a shoulder injury and also a lower back injury.
Perhaps this 49-stroke rally to save a break point in the third game of the decider was the one that tilted the scales in favor of the Frenchman.
In reality it was more than just one point, it was the accumulated effect of the physicality of the match that wore on Medvedev. Neither could contrive a way to hit through the court or draw errors from the other and eventually fatigue became a factor.
The Russian finally cracked by tossing in a double-fault on break point while serving at 3-4 and Simon made good on his gift, serving the match out in the next game as he converted his second match point when a Medvedev groundstroke sailed long.
“It’s hard for me to hit through him,” Simon said of his frequent practice partner Medvedev, “but when you play a match and you’re a bit tired, sometimes you relax and play great. I was feeling the ball great, even if I wasn’t feeling great in the legs.”
Simon finished with 30 winners and 35 unforced errors against 26 winners and 36 unforced for Medvedev. The 34-year-old won 25 of 30 points at the net, while Medvedev was only able to win 8 of 20.