Monaco stuns Nalbandian in Buenos Aires

BUENOS AIRES, Feb. 21 (UPI) -- Juan Monaco rallied from a set down Saturday to beat top-seeded David Nalbandian in the semifinals of the Copa Telmex men's tennis tournament in Buenos Aires.

The scores of the 2-hour, 41-minute match were 2-6, 7-5, 7-6 (7-2).

In a strange twist, Nalbandian, the defending champion who played before a partisan crowd, served for the match at 5-4 in the second set, but from 30-0, he lost the next 13 points in a row, allowing his compatriot to square the match at a set apiece.

With a tie-break in set three, Monaco secured his first victory in three career meetings against Nalbandian.

"I was a bit tight in the beginning," Monaco said (but) I would love to win this tournament in front of my home crowd for a second time."

In Sunday's final, the unseeded Monaco faces No. 3 Tommy Robredo of Spain, a 6-4, 7-6 (7-3) winner over fifth-seeded Jose Acasuso, also from Argentina.