PORTO/STARNBERG, August 30, 2024
Carlos Taberner leads the semi-final lineup at the inaugural CT Porto Cup, a new ATP Challenger Tour tournament organized by the Portuguese Tennis Federation and the Porto Tennis Club.
Familiar with playing in Portugal, the 27-year-old Spaniard took another important step toward his third consecutive final by defeating Croatian Dino Prizmic 6-3, 1-6, 6-3 on Friday.
Currently ranked 234th in the world, with a career-high ranking of World No. 85, Taberner, the fourth seed, saved all five break points he faced in the third set and nine throughout the match. He halted the momentum of his young opponent and capitalized on the two break points he created to secure his eighth consecutive victory and 12th in his last 13 matches.
Cat and mouse tennis in Porto 😼🐭
Carlos Taberner and Dino Prizmic finding all the angles#ATPChallenger | @Carlos_Taberner pic.twitter.com/zZYRV3WOkP
— ATP Challenger Tour (@ATPChallenger) August 30, 2024
Finalist in Cordenons and champion in Todi in the last two tournaments he played this month, Taberner is aiming for his 11th ATP Challenger career final and second in Portugal, four years after losing the Maia Open final to Pedro Sousa.
Saturday’s semifinal will be the 25th of his Challenger career, where he will face fifth-seeded Argentine Santiago Rodriguez Taverna, the same opponent he defeated two weeks ago. Rodriguez Taverna fought past Italian Enrico Dalla Valle 7-5, 7-5.
The other semifinal will also feature a seeded player and one who has previously reached the latter stages of a tournament in Portugal. No. 6 seed Adrian Andreev will face Nikolas Sanchez Izquierdo of Spain, a semifinalist at the 2021 Braga Open, marking his fifth ATP Challenger semifinal.
Andreev secured the first victory of the day by ending the campaign of Israeli qualifier Daniel Cukierman 7-6(7), 6-4 after saving a set point in the first set and recovering from a break down in the second.
The Bulgarian is aiming to reach his second Challenger final and keep his hopes alive for a first title, having been runner-up in Zadar earlier this season. For the Catalan Sanchez Izquierdo, a win would mean his first career final at this level.
