Metz, France (Sports Network) - Heavy French crowd favorites Jo-Wilfried
Tsonga and Gael Monfils moved into the semifinals at the Moselle Open on
Friday.
The top-seeded and defending Metz titlist Tsonga handled Canadian-born
American Jesse Levine 6-3, 6-4, while the seventh-seeded former top-10 star
Monfils upended second-seeded German Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-7 (3-7), 6-4, 6-4
in a 2-hour, 26-minute quarterfinal that marked a rematch of the 2009 Metz
final, which was also won by the acrobatic Frenchman.
The world No. 7 Tsonga, who defeated former titlist Ivan Ljubicic in last
year's Metz title match, popped seven aces and was broken only once by Levine
on Friday.
Monfils returned to the ATP World Tour this week after being sidelined since
May with a knee injury, which forced him to miss the French Open, Wimbledon,
Olympics and U.S. Open.
In addition to his title here three years ago, Monfils was the runner-up at
this event back in 2004.
Up next for the world No. 44 Monfils will be fifth-seeded Italian Andreas
Seppi, who ousted fourth-seeded German Florian Mayer 7-5, 6-2 on the indoor
hardcourts at Metz Expo Parc.
The Sports Network