Golf: Almagro on the cusp of title hat-trick after slaying Bellucci in Acapulco
The Spanish third seed was made to work hard for his final spot as he came through a tight semi-final against Brazil's Thomaz Bellucci.
Neither man could find a break of serve during the opening set, although Bellucci carved out three break-point chances, and it was Almagro who came through the tie-break 7-4. And he then sealed the win after securing the only break of the match to take the second set 6-4.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdAlmagro will face defending champion David Ferrer in the final as the Spaniard recovered from a set down to beat Alexandr Dolgopolov 5-7, 6-1, 6-1.
Gisela Dulko reached the final in the women's draw as she proved far too strong for Spain's Anabel Medina Garrigues, claiming three breaks in each set of a 6-0 6-2 win.
The Argentinian will not meet Spain's Arantxa Parra Santonja, after her 6-2 6-0 success over Johanna Larsson.
In Delray Beach, Juan Martin Del Potro continued his smooth progress back up the rankings, making the semi-finals after beating Kevin Anderson 6-4, 6-4. He plays Mardy Fish next, while Janko Tipsarevic and Kei Nishikori face off in the other semi-final tonight.