ATP Tour

Blockx rallies to stun Darderi, reach first ATP final in Estoril: 'I have no words'

Alexander Blockx was on the brink of defeat against second seed Luciano Darderi Saturday night at the Millennium Estoril Open but staged a thrilling comeback to reach his first ATP Tour final.

The No. 38 player in the PIF ATP Rankings, Blockx prevailed 5-7, 7-6(1), 7-6(5) in a two-hour, 45-minute semi-final battle at the ATP 250 event. The Belgian broke Darderi’s serve at 4-5 in the second set when Darderi served for the match and staged a comeback from 2-4 down in the third set and 1/4 down in the third-set tie-break to complete the thrilling victory.

"I have no words to describe this match right now," Blockx said. "I am happy to have won the match...I should have lost the match like four times today, so I am just grateful to be able to play tomorrow. I don't care what happens, I'm just lucky to play one more match here"

This was the second escape of the week for the 21-year-old, who survived two match points in the second round. On Saturday, in his first Lexus ATP Head2Head series meeting with Darderi, the Belgian found his best tennis when it mattered most. Blockx held his nerve through the chaos before shaking his head in disbelief after sealing the win, as he walked to the net to embrace the Italian, who was aiming to reach his eighth tour-level final.

With the win, Blockx became the first Belgian finalist in tournament history. The 21-year-old is the youngest Estoril finalist this decade and the fourth youngest in event history. The Belgian has enjoyed solid results on clay this season, highlighted by his semi-final run at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Madrid and third-round appearances in Monte-Carlo and Rome.

Awaiting Blockx in the final will be Frenchman Luca Van Assche, who will also be vying to win his first ATP Tour title Sunday.

Earlier on Saturday, Van Assche, who upset top seed Andrey Rublev in the last eight, defeated good friend and countryman Hugo Gaston 6-4, 7-5 to advance to his first ATP Tour championship match.

Watch highlights of the Van Assche-Gaston semi-final clash:

Frenchman Van Assche dropped serve when serving for the match at 5-4 in the second set. Yet the 22-year-old regained his composure to seal his first straight-sets win of the week. With his one-hour, 57-minute victory, Van Assche climbed 13 places to No. 65 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings.

"It was a tough match today against Hugo," Van Assche said. "It was very windy today… It was a very difficult match from the beginning to the end. I was very, very close. But I am very happy to be through."