Tennis: Darcis downs Stepanek at San Jose

SAN JOSE: Belgian Steve Darcis upset Czech fourth-seed Radek Stepanek 7-6, 7-6 to reach the quarter-finals of the ATP San Jose Open. Darcis will next face French fifth-seed Julien Benneteau, who ousted Gilles Muller 6-2, 6-4 in another second-round match. Meanwhile, French top-seed Gael Monfils withdrew with a right knee injury and was replaced by American Blake Strode, who was duly beaten by Bulgarian Dimitar Kutrovsky 7-5, 6-3.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 18^th, 2012.