Rafael Jodar stayed the course to win his rain-interrupted duel with Arthur Fils and reach the semi-final of the National Bank Open in Montreal.
Jodar prevailed 7-6 (7-5), 6-3 and moves to a live career-high ATP ranking of 11 after starting the year 165th in the world.
“I played a very high level against a tough player like Arthur,” Jodar said in his post-match on-court interview.
“I had to give my best to win this match. It worked perfectly, staying calm in those important moments of the match, those pressure moments.”
In an ATP Masters 1000 clash already rescheduled from Monday due to inclement weather, Jodar led Fils 5-4 before rain intervened.
There was an hour-long delay before Jodar took the first set on a tie-break.
The 19-year-old lost his serve early in the second set but recovered well and had too much class for his resilient French opponent.
American Brandon Nakashima beat Italy’s Luciano Darderi 6-2, 6-3 to set up a first-ever meeting with Jodar in the semi-final.
The other semi-final will be an all-American affair after Ben Shelton beat Jakub Mensik 6-3, 6-1 and Learner Tien eased past Spain’s Daniel Merida Aguilar 6-3, 6-2.
At the women’s event in Toronto, Coco Gauff reached the last four after quarter-final opponent Belinda Bencic withdrew due to a hip injury.
She will play Elena Rybakina, who came from behind to beat Naomi Osaka 4-6, 7-6 (7-5), 6-4.
Iga Swiatek and Elina Svitolina will meet in the other semi-final after wins over Diana Shnaider and Ekaterina Alexandrova, respectively.
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