Bogota, Colombia (SportsNetwork.com) - Top seed Richard Gasquet defeated Samuel Groth Thursday in the second round of the Claro Open Colombia.
The Frenchman, who is making his tournament debut, held on for a 7-6 (7-3), 7-6 (7-5) victory over Groth.
Next up for Gasquet is eighth-seeded Victor Estrella Burgos, who discarded Peter Polansky of Canada by a 6-4, 6-1 score. Estrella Burgos is through to the quarterfinals for the first time in his career.
Defending champion Ivo Karlovic fired 16 aces past Dudi Sela en route to a 7-6 (10-8), 7-6 (7-5) victory. The Croat improved to 6-0 lifetime against Sela.
The second seed will next meet Chinese Taipei's Jimmy Wang, who handled qualifier James Ward 6-3, 6-1. Wang last reached the quarterfinals in October 2007 at the Thailand Open in Bangkok.
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