Just moments after Omar Jasika booked his place in the Canberra International semi-finals his phone was lighting up with messages from his devoted fan club.

Jasika's straight sets (6-3, 6-1) win over friend Greg Jones has sent him deeper into an ATP Challenger tournament than he has been before.

It sets up an enticing battle between Jasika and long-time friend Marc Polmans, who has been riding a wave of momentum in 2016.

A Challenger event semi-final is uncharted territory for Jasika and his fan club is excited.

"They're going to be pretty happy with the result – some of them have sent me a few messages already," Jasika said.

"They just formed a group and started cheering me on, which is something you don't see every day so I'm happy that I've got a little army like that helping me get through some matches.

"They came down to the Aussie Open and they helped me out a lot."

Jasika said knocking a friend and training partner out of the tournament can be tough but it's a part of tennis he has to get used to – and Polmans is next on his the hit list.

"We're friends off the court but today it was different, trying to get the win for ourselves," Jasika said.

"I'm getting closer and closer now and I'm playing some good tennis. I'm playing another friend of mine tomorrow which is going to be another good match so I'm looking forward to it.

"[Polmans is] also my age and we grew up together ... it should be a good match."

Jasika weighed in on the debate surrounding Australian Open doubles partner Nick Kyrgios, who came under fire for throwing a game at the Shanghai Masters.

"It's definitely getting a lot of attention," Jasika said.

"He's got a few weeks off so maybe [he can turn it around] if he thinks about it a bit and takes his mind off tennis, which is not a bad thing."