VIENNA, Austria (AP) -Gael Monfils upset second-seeded Fernando Gonzalez 6-3, 7-6 (2) Friday to reach the semifinals of the BA Tennis Trophy.
The eighth-seeded Frenchman will play Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany, who defeated fifth-seeded Fernando Verdasco of Spain 6-2, 6-3.
"I was focused from the first ball to the last," said Monfils, who reached his fourth semifinal of the year. "I tried to be aggressive because he is a fighter who becomes dangerous if you let him play."
Feliciano Lopez of Spain rallied past Juergen Melzer of Austria 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 and next plays Philipp Petzschner of Germany. Petzschner defeated Carlos Moya of Spain 6-4, 6-2 to reach his first semifinal.
Gonzalez, who lost the 2006 final to Ivan Ljubicic, was in his third quarterfinal in three weeks.
From 3-3 and 0-15 in the opening set, Monfils won 12 straight points to close the match. The second set went with serve until 5-5 when Monfils converted his first break point.
Monfils failed to serve out the match, but went up 6-0 in the tiebreaker and finally converted his third match point when Gonzalez netted a forehand.
Kohlschreiber's win over Verdasco earned him his third semifinal appearance of the season - he won in Auckland, New Zealand, and reached the final in Halle, Germany.
The 32nd-ranked German conceded only 10 points on his serve and didn't face a break point. He had two breaks against Verdasco's serve in each set. Kohlschreiber had a bye in the second round after Juan Martin del Potro pulled out with a toe injury.
Lopez, who was 0-2 against Melzer, lost the opening set but started to control the match in the second.
"I served pretty good and was consistent from the baseline, especially in the second and third set," said Lopez, whose only ATP tour title came in Vienna in 2004.
Petzschner, who eliminated top-seeded Stanislas Wawrinka in the opening round, had 10 aces and held serve throughout against Moya.
Moya, once ranked No. 1, was the oldest player in the draw at 32. The Spaniard has won at least one ATP title for the last eight years.
