Nakashima defeats Fritz to reach Cincinnati Masters semifinals

Brandon Nakashima continued his impressive summer form on Friday, defeating fellow American and sixth-seeded Taylor Fritz to reach the semifinals of the Cincinnati Masters. The 25-year-old secured a 7-6(9), 4-6, 6-3 victory in a hard-fought match, marking his second consecutive Masters 1000 semifinal appearance following his run to the final in Montreal last week.

The match, played on August 21, saw Nakashima withstand a powerful serving display from Fritz, who hit 22 aces. However, Fritz also committed 31 unforced errors. Nakashima, seeded 27th, showed resilience after trailing a break in the decisive third set. He broke back to level the set at 3-3 and then broke again to take a 5-3 lead before serving out the match on his first opportunity with a forehand winner.

"I've gotten a lot of confidence over the summer," Nakashima said after the match. "In the final set I trusted my game, I'm proud with how I ended the match." He noted a tactical adjustment from his previous loss to Fritz in Washington, adding, "Today I was trying to hit bigger against him than in Washington, that's what got me through."

The victory was Nakashima's fourth over a top-10 player this season and his sixth...