Federer rallies to reach Istanbul final
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Istanbul, Turkey (SportsNetwork.com) - Top-seeded Roger Federer rallied from a set down on Saturday to reach the Istanbul Open final.
Federer recovered from a slow start to post a 2-6, 6-2, 7-5 victory over eighth-seeded Argentine Diego Schwartzman.
Schwartzman, who was playing in his first ATP Tour semifinal, took the opening set with a strong service game, but Federer broke twice in the second set to level the match.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The 22-year-old Schwartzman later dropped his serve to end the near two-hour match.
Federer is aiming for his 85th career title and third this year. He won tournaments in Brisbane and Dubai and was the runner-up at Indian Wells.
The 17-time Grand Slam champion is a win away from earning a title in a 19th different country.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Federer's opponent on Sunday will be third-seeded Pablo Cuevas. The Uruguayan beat second-seeded Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov 6-2, 6-4.
Cuevas won the title at Sao Paulo in February to improve to 3-0 lifetime in finals.