Djokovic prevailed 4-6, 7-6 (7), 6-3 after the 42nd-ranked Verdasco, a crafty left-hander and former top-10 player, controlled the first two sets until the latter stages of the tiebreaker.
Of the five match points Verdasco held in the second-set tiebreaker, four evaporated on his own mistakes.
“I would like to say tough luck for Fernando, he was clearly the better player for the bigger part of the match and he should have won,” Djokovic said on court. “It was just unfortunate.
“It’s definitely one of the most exciting matches I’ve played. I don’t think I’ve saved five match points too many times.”
The second-seeded Djokovic, who didn’t lose a set en route to the semifinals, broke Verdasco’s serve in the third game of the third set to finally establish what turned into a permanent lead in the 2-hour, 22-minute match.
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