Behind his strong serve, Ben Shelton moved into the final of the Swiss Indoors Basel following his 6-3, 7-6 (9) defeat of Frenchman Arthur Fils on Saturday.
In the process, Shelton, the sixth seed, snapped seventh-seeded Fils’ streak of 13 consecutive match wins in ATP 500 tournaments. Shelton won 88 percent (45 of 51) of the points on his first serve and never faced a break point.
In the final on Sunday, Shelton will take on another Frenchman, Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, who defeated fourth seed Holger Rune of Denmark 7-6 (6), 6-4. He followed the blueprint used by Shelton, winning 87 percent (33 of 38) of points on his first serve, and no break points faced.
Mpetshi Perricard was helped by 17 aces.
All four of the semifinalists in Basel were 22 or younger.
Erste Bank Open
Great Britain’s Jack Draper reached his first ATP 500 final with a 6-2, 6-4 defeat of Lorenzo Musetti of Italy in Vienna, Austria.
The seventh-seeded Draper needed one hour, 49 minutes to complete the victory and converted five of 10 break chances against the sixth-seeded Musetti. He has competed in three 250-level finals, winning one.
In the final, Draper will meet unseeded Russian Karen Khachanov, who ousted second-seeded Alex de Minaur of Australia 6-2, 6-4. Khachanov hit nine aces, part of his 27 winners against five unforced errors.
