Buenos Aires, Feb 24: Defending champions Carlos Moya and top seed Guillermo Coria set up a repeat of last year's Buenos Aires Open final Sunday.
Moya, the second seed, beat Argentine Jose Acasuso 7-6 7-5 in the second semi-final after world number four Coria had posted a 7-6 6-1 victory over 17-year-old Frenchman Richard Gasquet.
''I played really well, very solidly and with aggressive tennis,'' said Coria, nicknamed ''Magician'' by Argentine fans, after winning the first semi-final in 75 minutes on the clay centre court at the Buenos Aires Lawn Tennis Club.
Gasquet had a fine tournament, reaching the last four with a 6-3 4-6 7-5 victory over Chilean third seed Nicolas Massu in the quarter-finals but felt the fatigue of a match that lasted more than two and a half hours on Friday.
''Gasquet is very young and he's got a lot ahead of him. But I knew that he would be tired and that his strategy would be to play the ball short,'' Coria said.



''I'm really happy to reach the last day of the tournament again but this time I want to get over the anger I was left with last year (after losing the final to Moya). Tomorrow I'm going to kill myself to win.''



Gasquet said: ''To be eliminated by the title favourite does not bother me, especially when I think that in the quarters I eliminated the third seed.



''Although I didn't get to the final, I'm leaving here very happy with the standard I reached in this tournament. I had never got past a second round before and here i beat some great players.''


Bureau Report