CLEVELAND, February 16, 2020

The 2020 Cleveland Open presented by Cleveland Clinic is down to the final day, as the semi-final matches were completed on Saturday. Unseeded Yosuke Watanuki of Japan defeated No. 9 seed Ernesto Escobedo from the United States 6-4, 6-4 in the first singles semi-final.

Watanuki struck 15 aces and won 97 per cent of his first-service points to prevail after 61 minutes.

In the night match, No. 12 seed Mikael Torpegaard from Denmark eased past Brazilian Thomaz Bellucci 6-1, 6-1 to advance to his second consecutive Cleveland Open title match. Torpegaard, who finished runner-up to US-American Maxime Cressy last year, capitalized on five of his six break point chances to seal victory in just 55 minutes.

Following two title wins in Columbus in 2016 and 2019, Torpegaard is vying for his third ATP Challenger career crown. Watanuki lifted his maiden Challenger trophy on home soil in Kobe last season. The pair will meet for the first time.

In the doubles draw, the top seeded team of John-Patrick Smith and Luke Saville from Australia defeated the unseeded duo of Lloyd Glasspool from Great Britain and US-American Alex Lawson in a three-set thriller, 6-7 (6), 6-4, 10-6. The encounter lasted one hour and 26 minutes. The all-Australian combination will take on the unseeded team of Treat Huey from the Philippines and Nathaniel Lammons of the United States in Sunday’s final.

Tickets are available by visiting the tournament website.

RESULTS – FEBRUARY 15, 2020
Men’s
Singles – Semifinals
Y. Watanuki (JPN) d [9] E. Escobedo (USA) 64 64
[12] M. Torpegaard (DEN) d T. Bellucci (BRA) 61 61

Doubles – Semifinals
[1] L. Saville (AUS) / J. Smith (AUS) d L. Glasspool (GBR) / A. Lawson (USA) 67(6) 64 10-6