By Chris Oddo | Friday February 10, 2017
Victor Estrella Burgos won his 13th consecutive match at the Ecuador Open to set up a semifinal with Thomaz Bellucci.
Photo: Tennis TV
It was 13th time lucky for 36-year-old Victor Estrella Burgos in Quito on Friday as the two-time defending champion surged past Italian qualifier Federico Gaio, 6-4, 6-4, to set up a rematch of last year’s final (won by Estrella Burgos in three sets) in Saturday’s semifinal.
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Estrella Burgos, who is unseeded and playing at a ranking of 156, has been a hit at Quito ever since he first took the court at the Ecuador Open in 2015. He has won 26 of 31 sets on the venue’s red clay and has claimed half of his career Top 20 victories at Quito.
He withstood 39 aces from top-seeded Ivo Karlovic to prevail on Thursday, recording his fourth career Top 20 win in the process.
On Saturday he will look to complete another Quito tradition—getting past Brazil’s Thomaz Bellucci. Estrella Burgos defeated Bellucci in the 2015 semifinals and last year he defeated the Brazilian in the final.
Bellucci rolled past Argentina’s Renzo Olivo, 6-2, 6-1, behind six aces and only three points dropped on serve. He broke four times on nine opportunities and finished his lopsided victory in 53 minutes.
The lower half semifinal will feature Italy’s Paolo Lorenzi and Spain’s Albert Ramos-Vinolas. Lorenzi defeated American Rajeev Ram, 6-3, 6-4, while Ramos-Vinolas took out his compatriot Roberto Carballes Baena, 5-7, 6-4, 6-2.