QUIMPER, March 4, 2016

The top-seeds were back in action on Friday for the quarterfinals of the €42,500 Open BNP Paribas Banque De Bretagne in Quimper.

The tournament’s number one Paul-Henri Mathieu was leading 7-5 when his opponent Igor Sijsling retired before the start of the second set.

The world number 69 from France will take on Nikola Mektic in the stage of the final four. The Croatian lucky loser replaced Pierre-Hugues Herbert, who withdrew from the tournament due to fatigue and reached the quarterfinal through a 2-6, 7-6, 6-4 battle over German qualifier Tobias Kamke after two hours and 12 minutes.

Stands were fully packed on Friday (photo: Rémy Chautard)

Second seed Sergiy Stakhovsky had to go the distance, winning 6-4, 6-7, 6-1. The 30-year-old from the Ukraine lost the tie-break of the second set 7-3 after he had won the opening frame. Stakhovsky withstood 16 aces, hitting 15 of his own, gained the decisive break in the second game of the final set to advance after one hour and 56 minutes.

Stakhovksy will face Andrey Rublev next. The Russian teenager, who battled through the qualifying, knocked out fourth seed Lukas Lacko, winning 6-4, 3-6, 7-6. Rublev fired 24 aces and won 84% of his first service points to reach his first semi-final on the ATP Challenge Tour since the Huff Open in Moscow in June last year. The match lasted one hour and 50 minutes.