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Day 5 of the 2023 Japan Open saw the remaining seeded players going home.
Ben Shelton bested fellow American and fifth seed Tommy Paul, while Aslan Karatsev got the better of fourth seed Alex de Minaur. Both players who lost had an opportunity to make a play for one of the four ATP Finals spot, but have now fumbled their chances of qualifying.
Marcos Giron sent eighth seed Felix Auger-Aliassime packing, while home favorite Shintaro Mochizuki fought past Alexei Popyrin. Out of the four semifinalists, Karatsev is the only one to have won an ATP title.
Here's a short recap of how it all went down on Day 5 of the Japan Open:
Ben Shelton reaches his first semifinal outside of the Majors
Shelton's impressive Asian swing continues with a 7-6 (4), 6-3 win over compatriot Tommy Paul. He has now made it to his second semifinal of the season following his previous last four finish at the US Open. It also marks his first semifinal appearance outside of the Majors.
Shelton will now be eyeing to reach his maiden final. He has been in pretty good form and had reached the quarterfinals of the Shanghai Masters last week. He'll next take on another American, Marcos Giron, for a spot in the championship round.
Marcos Giron topples Felix Auger-Aliassime to reach his first semifinal of the year
Giron extended his remarkable run at the Japan Open with a comfortable 6-1, 6-4 victory over Auger-Aliassime. The American came through the qualifying rounds here and has now won five matches to make it to this stage. He defeated Casper Ruud and Yoshihito Nishioka in the previous rounds.
Giron's ranking had taken a tumble due to his underwhelming results. Currently ranked 79th, he could find himself back in the top 50 if he beats Shelton in the semifinals.
Aslan Karatsev ends Alex de Minaur's run in Tokyo
Karatsev defeated de Minaur 6-3, 6-2 to advance to his fourth semifinal of the season. The Australian was the highest ranked player left in the draw following the depatures of Taylor Fritz, Casper Ruud and Alexander Zverev.
Karatsev didn't drop his serve even once in the previous round and fended off all five break points that he faced. He'll now be aiming to reach his first final of the season, having lost all three of his previous semifinal matches.
Shintaro Mochizuki fights his way into a maiden ATP semifinial
Mochizuki knocked out defending champion Taylor Fritz in the second round to make headlines with a massive upset. The win was of considerable significance as he had never won a match on the ATP tour prior to this week.
Mochizuki's fairytale run continues at the Japan Open with a 7-5, 2-6, 7-5 win over Alexei Popyrin in the quarterfinals. The latter put up a fight, especially in the third set, but crumbled while trying to force a tie-break at 6-5.
Mochizuki, on the other hand, was cheered on by a vocal home crowd who went crazy over his shotmaking. The Japanese will face Karatsev in his first-ever semifinal on the ATP tour.
Japan Open 2023: Day 5 results at a glance
Men's singles
Aslan Karatsev def. (4) Alex de Minaur: 6-3, 6-2
Ben Shelton def. (5) Tommy Paul: 7-6 (4), 6-3
Marcos Giron def. (8) Felix Auger-Aliassime: 6-1, 6-4
Shintaro Mochizuki def. Alexei Popyrin: 7-5, 2-6, 7-5
Men's doubles
Max Purcell/Rinky Hijikata def. (3) Jean Julien-Rojer/Marcelo Arevalo: 3-6, 6-3, 10-4
