Richard Gasquet looks to move a step closer to another Metz final when he plays hard hitting left-hander Gilles Muller in Friday’s quarter-finals.
Gasquet may have been playing his first match of the week on Thursday but he looked super sharp as he dispatched Olivier Rochus with ease 6-2, 6-1 in just over an hour.
"I started well which put me in great conditions in the match right away," said Gasquet. "I think I served really well and did very few unforced errors. This is a great first round for me and I expect a very difficult match tomorrow against Muller."
Gasquet needs a good run this week to aid his chances of qualifying for the ATP World Tour Finals and in this form he looks favourite to make the final from the bottom half of the draw.
Muller’s edged through a couple of tight matches, banging down a slew of aces to see off French youngster Benoit Paire 7-6, 6-4 in round two.
Gasquet has won all four of their previous matches but the last time they played was 2005 so these are largely irrelevant. Given Muller’s current form it will be a stern test for him but on the basis of the form he showed on Thursday, look for him to come through in three sets.
