BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Casper Ruud beat Matteo Arnaldi in straight sets to advance to the semifinals of the Barcelona Open and notch his season-leading 27th win on Friday.

The sixth-ranked Norwegian won 6-4, 6-3 on the outdoor clay to give him two more wins than Jannik Sinner.

Ruud is trying to reach his fourth final this year having lost in Los Cabos, Acapulco and Monte Carlo.

Ruud will face Tomas Martin Etcheverry on Saturday after the Argentine defeated Cameron Norrie 7-6 (4), 7-6 (1).

Ruud got the better of Martin Etcheverry in their only previous meeting last year, when he had to rally from a set down in Beijing.

“It is going to be another difficult match,” Ruud said.

Later Friday, Stefanos Tsitsipas plays Facundo Díaz Acosta, while Dusan Lajovic meets Arthur Fils.

Top-seeded Carlos Alcaraz withdrew from the tournament before it started because of an injury, while second-seeded Andrey Rublev lost in the second round.

Rafael Nadal, a 12-time champion in Barcelona, made his return to the courts for the first time since January on Tuesday, only to lose the next day.

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AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis