Davydenko routs Melzer 6-1, 6-1 to reach Croatia Open final; Ferrero edges Seppi in 3 sets

Davydenko, Ferrero advance to Croatia Open final

UMAG, Croatia — Top-seeded Nikolay Davydenko cruised into the final of the Croatia Open on Saturday by beating Jurgen Melzer of Austria 6-1, 6-1.

The Russian will face former No. 1 Juan Carlos Ferrero, who beat seventh-seeded Andreas Seppi of Italy 6-1, 6-7 (1), 7-5 in the other semifinal.

It was Davydenko’s ninth straight singles victory after winning the German Open last week. His 15th career title took him back into the top 10 at No. 9. He missed nearly four months at the start of the year with injuries, but is 17-3 since the French Open.

“I cannot recall any of my semifinals being so short,” Davydenko said after winning in 50 minutes. “Today, I kept my concentration from the beginning. (I) tried to make it faster. I hit many winners, played good at every moment.”

The fifth-seeded Ferrero is playing in his first event since reaching the Wimbledon quarterfinals. It is the first time since 2005 that the Spaniard has reached more than one final in the same year. In April, he won Casablanca for his 12th career title — but first since winning Madrid in 2003.

“I am happy with the match, the win, the week. Now, I have to try to win the final,” Ferrero said. “I could have shortened the match with a break point at 3-2 in the second set, but he played good.”