The dream run continues. After starting the qualifying rounds last week, Pavel Kotov has now made it all the way to the finals after defeating Miomir Kecmanovic in the semifinal 6-3, 6-4. On Sunday, Pavel Kotov will play his first ever ATP Tour final on Centre Court at the BNP Paribas Nordic Open.
In the first single semifinal of the day World No.53 Miomir Kecmanovic faced the surprise of the tournament, qualifier Pavel Kotov. Both 24-year-olds faced each other for the second time after a first meeting in Beijing in September. In their previous encounter in qualifying rounds, Kecmanovic had defeated Kotov in three sets.
On Centre Court today, Kotov was the player who took the lead early in the first set. Calm and composed, he won the power struggle and secured a break to lead 4-2. Unable to free himself from the grip of his opponent, Miomir Kecmanonic stacked up unforced errors, while Kotov steadily imposed with his winning shots. He secured the first set 6-3 with compelling authority.
Beaming with confidence, Pavel Kotov replicated his impressive tennis in the second set. Kecmanovic attempted to take more risks, but Kotov responded with surgical precision, flirting with the lines. He won the second set 6-4 under the mesmerized eyes of The Royal Tennis Hall. On the way to his first final, Pavel Kotov, currently ranked 109, knocked out some of the tournament's top seeds including Tallon Griekspoor, Christopher Eubanks and Lorenzo Sonego.
- I am so incredibly happy, completely speechless. Thanks for all the support from the audience. I will do my very best tomorrow and I hope to see you all here again then, said Kotov in his on-court interview.
In Sunday’s final starting at 15:00, Pavel Kotov will meet the winner of an exciting match-up between another Serbian Laslo Djere and Frenchman Gaël Monfils.
In the first semi-final of the double's tournament, the pair Golubev/Molchanov won in two straight sets against Galloway/Olivetti, 7-5, 6-2, and are now through to the finals. In the final, they face the winner of the match between Griekspoor/Stevens and Bhambri/Cash who play later on Saturday evening.
- We started the year strong together and have managed to maintain stability, which has meant that we played several finals in several tournaments this year. Hopefully we will manage to win this tournament tomorrow, shared Golubev and Molchanov after their semifinal win. The doubles final in the BNP Paribas Nordic will be start at 12:30 tomorrow followed by the singles finals at The Royal Tennis Hall.
In the first single semifinal of the day World No.53 Miomir Kecmanovic faced the surprise of the tournament, qualifier Pavel Kotov. Both 24-year-olds faced each other for the second time after a first meeting in Beijing in September. In their previous encounter in qualifying rounds, Kecmanovic had defeated Kotov in three sets.
On Centre Court today, Kotov was the player who took the lead early in the first set. Calm and composed, he won the power struggle and secured a break to lead 4-2. Unable to free himself from the grip of his opponent, Miomir Kecmanonic stacked up unforced errors, while Kotov steadily imposed with his winning shots. He secured the first set 6-3 with compelling authority.
Beaming with confidence, Pavel Kotov replicated his impressive tennis in the second set. Kecmanovic attempted to take more risks, but Kotov responded with surgical precision, flirting with the lines. He won the second set 6-4 under the mesmerized eyes of The Royal Tennis Hall. On the way to his first final, Pavel Kotov, currently ranked 109, knocked out some of the tournament's top seeds including Tallon Griekspoor, Christopher Eubanks and Lorenzo Sonego.
- I am so incredibly happy, completely speechless. Thanks for all the support from the audience. I will do my very best tomorrow and I hope to see you all here again then, said Kotov in his on-court interview.
In Sunday’s final starting at 15:00, Pavel Kotov will meet the winner of an exciting match-up between another Serbian Laslo Djere and Frenchman Gaël Monfils.
In the first semi-final of the double's tournament, the pair Golubev/Molchanov won in two straight sets against Galloway/Olivetti, 7-5, 6-2, and are now through to the finals. In the final, they face the winner of the match between Griekspoor/Stevens and Bhambri/Cash who play later on Saturday evening.
- We started the year strong together and have managed to maintain stability, which has meant that we played several finals in several tournaments this year. Hopefully we will manage to win this tournament tomorrow, shared Golubev and Molchanov after their semifinal win. The doubles final in the BNP Paribas Nordic will be start at 12:30 tomorrow followed by the singles finals at The Royal Tennis Hall.
