FRANTISEK Cermak is on course to being the first player to successfully retain the doubles title at the ATP Malaysian Open.
He and Slovakian partner Filip Polasek dispatched US Open champions Jurgen Melzer-Philipp Petzschner 7-6 (9-7), 6-4 in the semi-finals yesterday.
It was a nail-biting first set which saw Cermak-Polasek winning 9-7 in the tiebreak, thanks to a number of costly unforced errors from the top seeds.
The second set saw Cermak-Polasek, the third seeds, clinch a crucial break in the third game. The duo had a chance to wrap up the match with a brace of match points in the ninth game but could not convert. They later held serve to close out the match.
Cermak, who partnered Slovakian Michal Mertinak to the title last year, said the pair were lucky to have won the first set against the top seeds.
"It was a tough match and we were forced to play our best. We were lucky to have won the first set and it definitely changed the course of the match for us," said the 34-year-old.
"We are very happy to beat them and make the final as we have lost to them four to five times (with different partners) in the past so this is a good result for us."
The World No 20 will face second seeds Eric Butorac of the United States and Jean-Julien Rojer of the Netherlands Antilles who beat fourth seeded American pairing of Scott Lipsky and Rajeev Ram 6-3, 7-6 (7-5), 10-6.
