NEW YORK: Number three Steve Johnson was the last seed standing in the ATP grass court tournament at Newport, Rhode Island, Friday, booking a semifinal berth as Marcel Granollers ousted top-seeded Adrian Mannarino. Granollers, ranked 124th in the world, breezed past France’s Mannarino of France 6-3, 6-1. He needed just 62 minutes to deny 26th-ranked Mannarino a third semifinal of the season. He’ll try to build on that success when he takes on Johnson, who made similarly short work of Israel’s Dudi Sela 6-2, 6-3.
Johnson’s 11 aces more than compensated for five double faults and he saved both break points he faced in the 58-minute contest. The American will be seeking his fourth career title and his second of 2018, after his April win in the clay court tournament in Houston. Granollers has won four ATP singles titles and 13 doubles titles and was once ranked in the top 20. The first two semifinalists were decided on Thursday, when India’s Ramkumar Ramanathan and American Tim Smyczek advanced. — Reuters
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