Roger Federer will bid for a record eighth Gerry Weber Open title when he plays Andreas Seppi after advancing to his 10th final.
Federer defeated big-serving Ivo Karlovic 7-6 (3), 7-6 (4) while Seppi won the other semifinal after second-seeded Kei Nishikori pulled out with a left calf injury when the Italian was leading 4-1.
“I’ll try to take a few positive memories with me (for the final),” said Seppi, whose only victory over Federer came at the Australian Open in January. “I think it’s 11-1. I’m certainly not the favourite.”
Federer won just five points on Karlovic’s serve in the first set but made a mini-break to go 4-3 up in the first tiebreaker. He won the set on Karlovic’s double-fault.
In the second tiebreaker, Federer correctly challenged a call that would have put Karlovic ahead 4-3 and secured another mini-break when Karlovic hit a return into the net. He took the first of two match points.
Anderson in Queen’s final
london: Kevin Anderson made the final at Queen’s Club by beating Gilles Simon of France 6-3, 6-7 (6), 6-3 on Saturday.
The unseeded South African struck his 34th ace to seal victory, bringing his total of aces in the tournament to 96.
Anderson will appear in his second final of the year on Sunday after winning his 12th career title in Marseille in February.
Andy Murray and Viktor Troicki meet in the other semi-final.