Opelka dents Bautista Agut's Race to London bid with Basel victory
The American fired 31 aces to claim his third Top 10 win of the season on Friday at the ATP 500 tournament.
World No. 37 Reilly Opelka smashed 31 aces to bring down Roberto Bautista Agut, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, on Friday in the quarterfinals of Basel.
Opelka struggled with his last three Top 10 opponents, but revealed a higher level of play to topple the 10th-ranked Spaniard. Bautista Agut, who was looking to keep pace with Matteo Berrettini in the Race to London, has fallen further behind after the loss. Berrettini reached the semifinals in Vienna to increase his lead and can widen the gap this weekend.
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Opelka, who also took out ATP Finals hopeful Fabio Fognini, will next face either Alex de Minaur or Jan-Lennard Struff in Saturday's semifinals. Opelka is looking to win his second title of the year after tasting victory at the New York Open.
