Granollers among Bucharest semifinalists

BUCHAREST, Romania, Sept. 24 (UPI) -- Marcel Granollers rallied for a victory Friday in taking a semifinals spot in the BCR Open tennis tournament in Romania.

Granollers upset third-seeded Potito Starace 3-6, 7-6 (9-7), 6-4 with a seven-ace attack. Three of the aces came in the third set when Granollers also had a pair of breaks over Starace.

Granollers took the lead with a first-game break but Starace answered in the fourth game. Granollers was able, however, to take the final three games of the match, including a break in the ninth game when Starace hit the final point into the net.

Top-seeded Albert Montanes also went three sets before advancing over No. 8-seed Jeremy Chardy 6-3, 1-6, 6-3. Chardy won two more points (75-73) in the match but that was because of a 29-13 advantage in the second set. Montanes overcame a break in the third.

Fourth-seeded Juan Ignacio Chela took out Bjorn Phau 6-3, 6-3 and qualifier Pablo Andujar was a 6-4, 6-4 winner over Pablo Cuevas. The Andujar-Cuevas match took 2 hours 10 minutes.

Montanes goes against Chela in Saturday's semifinals with the other match sending Andujar against Granollers, who are both unseeded.