Thiem edges closer to first Generali Open title as Ruud marches on

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Kitzbuhel (Austria), August 2: Dominic Thiem edged towards a maiden Generali Open title as the world number four progressed into the semi-finals by beating Pablo Andujar.

The top seed is aiming to win his home tournament for the first time and, although his match with Andujar lasted close to two hours, Thiem came out on top 7-6 (7-4), 6-4 on Thursday.

Thiem, a beaten finalist at Roland Garros earlier this year but a winner in Barcelona and at Indian Wells, excelled on the second serve and broke four times to overcome the Spaniard.

Lorenzo Sonego, who beat third seed Fernando Verdasco 6-4 6-4, awaits Thiem in the final four.

Joining Thiem and Sonego is 20-year-old Norwegian Casper Ruud, who continued his fine run with an impressive 6-3 7-6 (7-4) victory over Pablo Cuevas to reach his third ATP Tour semi-final of 2019.

Jeremy Chardy beat second seed Dusan Lajovic in the round of 16, but the Frenchman could not follow that win up against Albert Ramos-Vinolas, who triumphed 6-3 6-4 to set up a semi against Ruud.