Tsonga, Pouille set for all French final
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga overcame Philipp Kohlschreiber in the Vienna Open semi-finals to set up an all-French title clash with Lucas Pouille and keep his hopes of making the season-ending ATP Finals alive.
Tsonga, who won 7-6 (7-4) 7-5 in one hour and 45 minutes, served 19 aces and converted two out of four break point opportunities to advance to his fifth final of the season and third in Vienna.
If the world No.15 claims the title on Sunday, he will move to within 105 points of Spain's Pablo Carreno Busta who currently holds the final qualifying spot for the year-ending tournament in London next month.
The two remaining places for London are likely to be decided in the early rounds of the Paris Masters, the last tournament of the regular season.
Coming into the event after sealing the Antwerp title, Tsonga hardly put a foot wrong as he ground out his German opponent to take the first set in a tiebreak.
The second set went with serve up to 5-5 before Tsonga switched gears to secure the crucial break with a strong forehand winner. He sealed the match with an ace for his 10th straight win over Kohlschreiber.
Earlier, Pouille fought back to beat Briton Kyle Edmund 6-7 (9-7) 6-4 6-3 in two hours and 15 minutes to stay on course for his third title of the season after wins in Stuttgart and Budapest.
