By Chris Oddo | Friday July 22, 2016
Nikoloz Basilashvili had never won more than two matches in a row in his career. Counting last weekend’s work at Davis Cup and this week’s action at the Generali Open in Kitzbuhel, Austria, he’s won six in a row and looking to make it seven.
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The 24-year-old Tbilisi native defeated 6th-seeded Dusan Lajovic in Friday’s first semifinal, 6-3, 6-1, to become the first player from Georgia to have reached an ATP final.
Basilashvili will face Italy’s Paolo Lorenzi in Saturday’s final. Lorenzi needed 13 match points but eventually worked his way past Austria’s Gerald Melzer, 7-6(4), 7-6(13). The 34-year-old Italian is into his second career final and is playing at a career-high ranking of No. 48 in the world.
The winner on Saturday in Kitzbuhel will become the fifth first-time winner on the ATP World Tour this season, joining Nick Kyrgios (Marseille), Diego Schwartzman (Istanbul), Steve Johnson (Nottingham) and Albert Ramos-Vinolas (Bastad).