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Eubanks and Giron reach ATP Newport semi-finals
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Eubanks and Giron reach ATP Newport semi-finals

Chris Eubanks won five of the last six points in a third-set tiebreak to defeat Australia’s Aleksandar Vukic on Friday and reach the semifinals of the ATP Hall of Fame Open.

The 28-year-old American knocked out Vukic 6-2, 4-6, 7-6 (7/3) after two hours and five minutes in the grass-court tournament in Newport, Rhode Island.

“The match had a lot of ups and downs. In the third set I really got into a good rhythm and that gave me energy,” Eubanks said.

“After I got that first hold in the third set, I felt like myself again. I enjoyed it. I was very happy with how I played and how I competed. I was happy to get another win.”

Eubanks, who won his only ATP final on grass in Mallorca in June 2023, reached the semi-finals against American number two Marcos Giron on Saturday, beating Australian qualifier Alex Bolt 6-4, 6-1 to set up an all-American last four.

Giron reached his third ATP semifinal of the year, all on home soil. He lost to Tommy Paul in the Dallas final in February and lost a Delray Beach semifinal to Taylor Fritz.

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In the other semifinal, wildcard player Reilly Opelka will face 19-year-old Alex Michelsen, who finished second in Newport last year. He will play his first tournament since 2022 in Washington.

Opelka, ranked 1,188th in the world, is the lowest-ranked player in the ATP era to reach the semi-finals. He fell during his absence after hip and wrist surgeries.

Eubanks, ranked 128th, was just 6-15 in ATP matches this year until his run in Newport.

Vukic, who was trailing 8-2 in the deciding set tiebreakers this year, double-faulted to give Eubanks a 4-2 lead. Eubanks followed that up with a forehand winner.

They traded errant forehands before the sixth-seeded Australian hit a forehand volley to give fourth-seeded Eubanks the win.