Ram/Salisbury Secure Cincinnati SF Spot

Top seeds Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury are inching closer to their second title of the season (Monte-Carlo) after handling Karen Khachanov and Denis Shapovalov 6-1, 7-6(6) Friday at the Western & Southern Open.

Should the two-time Grand Slam champions leave Cincinnati, Ohio with the trophy, the duo would rise to World No. 3 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Doubles Teams Rankings (currently fifth) and strengthen their claim for a spot at the eight-team Nitto ATP Finals.

On Saturday, they will look to avenge their loss earlier this season to Santiago Gonzalez and Edouard Roger-Vasselin, who won the previous meeting in Indian Wells in a match tie-break.

Gonzalez and Roger-Vasselin backed up their upset over Montreal champions Wesley Koolhof and Neal Skupski on Friday by ousting two-time Roland Garros champions Kevin Krawietz and Andreas Mies 6-3, 6-7(2), 10-6.

Gonzalez and Roger-Vasselin have played only one other tournament together this season: Indian Wells, in which they made the final before falling to home favourites John Isner and Jack Sock.

Also in Friday’s doubles action, Tim Puetz and Michael Venus saved all four break points faced, surging to a 6-3, 6-3 victory over second seeds Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos. Puetz and Venus, who were champions in Dubai earlier this season, will look for a spot in their fifth final of the year when they collide with either Holger Rune and Stefanos Tsitsipas or Marcelo Arevalo and Jean Julier-Rojer in the semi-finals.