Monfils, Lopez, Melzer advance in Vienna; Del Potro withdraws with injury

While red-hot Argentine star Juan Martin Del Potro withdrew this morning from his second round match at the Bank-Austria Tennis Trophy in Vienna against German Philipp Kohlschreiber due to an injured big toe, Gael Monfils and 2004 champion Feliciano Lopez (pictured) were winners on Thursday. Vienna born Jurgen Melzer was also a winner this afternoon in his hometown tournament.

No. 8 seed Monfils smoothly defeated Radek Stepanek, 6-4, 6-3, in 72 to minutes to advance to his fifth ATP quarterfinal of the season. The Frenchman smashed fives aces, while losing only seven points on his first serve. Monfils was able to break serve on four of six chances, while the 29-year-old Czech Republic native could only break serve once throughout the match. Monfils is currently ranked No. 28 in the South African Airways ATP Rankings, which is one spot ahead of Stepanek who stands at No. 29. Monfils improves to 2-1 all-time against the Czech star. Monfils will next meet No. 2 seed Fernando Gonzalez, who fought off five match points yesterday in his second round match against Latvia’s Ernests Gulbis. The Chilean star that won a silver medal at the Beijing Olympics will be playing the Frenchman for the first time in his career.

Lopez, the title winner in 2004 in Vienna by beating Guillermo Canas, defeated lucky loser Santiago Giraldo this afternoon, 7-6(5), 6-3. Lopez advances to the quarterfinals for the fifth time at this event in as many appearances. Despite an awful serving performance in which he served 49 percent and double faulted five times, the Spaniard was able to capture the only service break of the match. Lopez improves his 2008 record to 18-22, which has been highlighted by a runner-up finish at the Dubai event. Giraldo, who replaced No. 6 seed Tommy Robredo in the draw due to his withdrawal, falls to 4-8 on the season. Lopez will next do battle against Melzer, a hometown favorite.

Melzer held off a strong effort by Juan Carlos Ferrero, winning the match, 7-6(4), 6-3, in just over 90 minutes. Melzer smashed seven aces and won 77 percent of his second serve points compared to Ferrero’s three aces and 36 percent of second serves won. Melzer was able to capture the edge on service breaks, breaking twice while Ferrero only broke serve once to earn just his second victory over the Spaniard in six career meetings. Ferrero, who defeated No. 4 seed Ivo Karlovic in the opening round on Monday, falls to 19-14 on the year. Melzer enters his quarterfinal match against Lopez with a 2-0 series edge, winning most recently in the first round of this year’s US Open in New York.