BRISBANE – Cypriot tennis star Marcos Baghdatis marched victoriously into the quarterfinals of the Brisbane International for the third year in a row after an impressive 6-4, 6-2 victory over favourite Florian Mayer.
He will now face Frenchman Gilles Simon in the next round
Limassol-born Baghdatis, who had defeated Australian wildcard Benjmain Mitchell 6-4, 6-4 in the first round, notched up his third career victory over the sixth-seeded German following wins last year in the first round of the Miami Series and in 2010 when he beat him in the quarterfinals of the Nice Open.
Mayer had defeated Baghdatis 3-0 in the ATP French Open in 2011.
Baghdatis will now face Simon in the next round after the Frenchman beat Colombia’s Alejandro Falla 7-6, 7-6 in the previous round.
The two have met four times before with each player having enjoyed two victories. Baghdatis beat Simon at the 2010 Dubai Open and the 2007 Halle Open while Simon defeated Baghdatis at the 2012 Paris Open and in the final of the Marseille Open in 2007.
Simon is currently ranked 16th in the world while Baghdatis is ranked 33rd.