The semifinalists of this year’s Gerry Weber Open in Halle, Germany have been determined with second seed Novak Djokovic leading the pack. The Serbian easily beat Jurgen Melzer 6-1, 6-4.
Next up for Djokovic is Belgian qualifier Olivier Rochus who defeated German Benjamin Becker in three tight sets 6-7, 6-3, 6-3.
Interestingly, Rochus holds the lead in the head-to-head match record against Djokovic (2-0). However, those matches were contested four years ago.
“It’s going to be interesting to play him again. He has a great game on grass, he’s got a great touch and he moves very well. He played the qualifying rounds. so he’s got a few matches on grass already,” Djokovic said.
Rochus, who had a shoulder surgery late last year, has been playing in challenger events to regain his ranking. He’s currently ranked 136th in the world.
The other semifinal will be contested between Germans Philipp Kohlschreiber and Tommy Haas. Kohlscreiber was the runner-up last year to Roger Federer. This could be the German’s chance to hoist the trophy this year since Federer decided to skip the tournament following his overwhelming victory at the French Open last weekend.
