If God is a tennis fan, and with the wealth of talent currently playing the game there is enough evidence to suggest he might be, then he was otherwise engaged yesterday.

Either that, or he was happily ignoring the pleas, some silent, others less so, that were emanating from centre court at the XL Open.

At the business end of the week, when the prize appears within touching distance the pressures and the desire heighten. So too does the volume, and anything and everything is fair game.

Marcel Granollers began the week as the conqueror of James Blake, and early round opponents were brushed aside by the Spaniard.

Viktor Troicki however appears to be no respecter of reputation, or seeding, having dumped Sergio Roitman out in the first round, he did the same to Granollers in the quarter-finals yesterday, winning 6-3, 0-6, 6-2.

God is obviously not responsible for a bad bounce, a marginal line call, or the ball hitting the net-cord and falling back on the wrong side.

And the anguished cries that accompanied Granollers' exit from the competition came from a tortured soul who was struggling to come to terms with his own limitations, rather than a believer asking why he had been forsaken.

Having recovered from losing the first set, his subsequent collapse having won the second 6-0 was so complete, so emphatic, that it hints at a confidence so fragile that the merest hint of resistance seems to shatter it.

There were signs of course in the opening set. Granollers took the first two games and seemed destined for a quick finish. But Troicki wouldn't budge, and fought back.

The first gaps started to appear when Granollers double faulted on crucial points and the Serbian went on to win 6-3.

The second set was something of an enigma. Granollers rattled off six straight games and looked back to his former self.

But he was then broken in the first game of the third set and it all started to fall apart rather quickly.

Granollers didn't just stick to pleading with God, he does a nice line in cursing as well. Something that earned him a code violation for one particularly vitriolic outburst.

Troicki had a more restrained approach overall. There was the odd roar of annoyance, but generally he stuck to a rueful grin that said 'oh great, it's going to be one of those days'.

Even so, he managed to maintain his composure often enough to benefit from Granollers descent into that dark place that saps all the intelligence, all the reasoning, and on occasion, all the talent, from players when things are going wrong.

The Serbian deserved his win, not only for keeping his head, but also for some delightful touches at the net that only increased his opponent's frustration.

He will now face Carlos Berlocq in today's semi-final and it would be a brave soul that bet against him winning the whole thing.

Granollers wasn't the only one battling his own demons yesterday. Vincent Spadea lost in three sets as well, with Berlocq benefiting from his opponents inability to stay focused on the task at hand.

The Argentine took the first set 6-4, but then lost the second. Spadea should have fancied himself in the third set, but proceeded to then go 3-0 down. Once again he battled back, but always looked like he was fighting a losing battle, and eventually crashed out of the tournament, 6-4, 4-6, 6-4.

In the days other games, Donald Young was swept aside by the Australian Peter Luczak, who now faces Kei Nishikori, who beat Ernests Gulbis 6-2, 2-6, 6-2, in tomorrow's other semi-final.