Marcos turned in a dominant display in ousting fourth seed Roberto Bautista Agut 7-5, 6-0 to reach the semifinals of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships on Thursday. He is projected to return to the Top 50 of the Emirates ATP Rankings with the win, reaching his first semifinal at an ATP World Tour 500 event since Tokyo 2012.
"He's playing great tennis," Marcos said following the match. "I knew it would be very tough today physically, mentally. I think that's why I held strong at that eighth game, because I knew beforehand that it would be tough. I'm very happy also with the way I ended it. I think I started playing better and better throughout the second set."
Marcos survived a tumultuous end to the first set, which saw him serve for it at 5-4 after breaking to love, only to be broken right back. He would break again in the next game and successfully secured the opener 7-5 on his fourth set point. It would be one-way traffic from there. Marcos would win the second 6-0, which was his first bagel set since July 2015 (Atlanta) and first against a Top 20 opponent since Roland Garros 2010. It was an impressive win for Marcos, as Bautista Agut had already won two ATP World Tour titles this year and was in top form.
"I think I stayed strong, especially in that eighth game or ninth game," Marcos added. "I don't know what happened there with my serve. I served four double faults. I had to stay strong through the baseline, not give points away. I did that. I'm very happy with the victory."
In total, Marcos fired 22 winners and six aces, denying five of six break points faced. He prevailed after one hour and 36 minutes, setting a semifinal clash against another Spaniard - Feliciano Lopez. It will be their first meeting since 2012, with Marcos owning a 3-1 head-to-head advantage.
