Robredo defeats Ramos, Cilic keeps home hopes alive

TommyRobredo

Second seed Robredo headed into the ATP 250 tournament following disappointing showings at the Swedish Open and the Hamburg Open.

But he made relatively straightforward work of Spanish compatriot Ramos, requiring just a break of serve in either set to set up a clash with another countryman Pablo Carreno Busta.

Carreno Busta was handed a free pass into the quarter-finals as his opponent, Carlos Berlocq of Argentina, withdrew prior to their scheduled encounter on Wednesday.

Marin Cilic - the 2012 champion - continued his run on home soil with a 7-5 6-3 victory against Igor Sijsling of the Netherlands.

Third seed Cilic, who pushed world number one Novak Djokovic to five sets in the quarter-finals at Wimbledon earlier this month, showed further signs of his recent good form by securing a confident success in just one hour and seven minutes.

Cilic lost just nine points on serve in the encounter, and will now face fifth seed Lukas Rosol in the last eight.

Rosol, coming off an appearance in the final of the Mercedes Cup and a run to the quarter-finals in Hamburg, produced another example of his clay-court prowess by overcoming Pere Riba of Spain 7-6 (7-4) 6-1.

It was a fine all-round performance from the Czech, who saved a set point in the first set, before dominating the second in a contest that saw him serve nine aces and convert two of his three break-point opportunities.

Author(s)