Montpellier, France – Rising Frenchman Benoit Paire upset fellow countryman Gilles Simon to reach the semifinals at the Open Sud de France tennis event.
The eighth-seeded world No. 43 Paire dismissed the fourth-seeded 14th-ranked Simon 7-5, 7-6 (7-4) in 1 hour, 47 minutes in Friday's quarterfinals on the indoor hardcourts at Montpellier's Park & Suites Arena.
The 23-year-old Paire's final four opponent on Saturday will be another compatriot, Michael Llodra, who bounced Czech Jan Hajek 7-6 (7-3), 6-1 on Day 4.
The left-handed crowd favorite Llodra was a runner-up at this event in 2009 in Lyon.
Another quarterfinal saw Finnish veteran Jarkko Nieminen overcome Ukrainian Sergiy Stakhovsky 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 (7-2).
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