Rising Argentine Sebastian Baez felt great after stunning Hugo Gaston for the semifinal at the Next Gen ATP Finals. Baez, who is enjoying a career-high ranking of No. 111 in the world, overcame Gaston 4-3 4-2 4-2 to make the semifinal in his Next Gen ATP Finals debut..
Gaston made the Paris Masters quarterfinal last week and Baez knew he would have to deliver a good performance if he wanted to beat the Frenchman. Baez beat Gaston in a direct battle for the final semifinal spot from their group..
"I feel great,” Baez said in his on-court interview, per the Next Gen ATP Finals website. “It is not just for me, but my team as well. I am happy to have won this match, but we now need to think ahead to the next match.
I think the key was to stay aggressive and concentrate all the time because Gaston is a dangerous player, so I am happy I did that”.
Baez having a great run
In his opening match at the tournament in Milan, Baez surprised home favorite Lorenzo Musetti in four sets.
"I feel so good,” Baez said in his on-court interview after the Musetti win. “It was a great match and I am happy to win as Lorenzo is a great player. He started to play better and the crowd began to really support him.
It is special for us when you are in your own country with the energy from the people. I tried to stay in the moment and think about the next point." After beating Musetti, Baez lost to Sebastian Korda in his following match.
Gaston also entered the final day with one and one loss so their match was a direct battle for the last semifinal spot from their group. Gaston entered the match as the favorite but Baez delivered a great performance to beat the Frenchman and progress into the next stage of the tournament. It remains to be seen if Baez can continue his stunning Milan campaign and make the final.