Nadal, upstart Tsonga reach Oz Open semis

Melbourne, Australia (Sports Network) - Second-seeded Spaniard Rafael Nadal and unseeded Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga were a pair of quarterfinal winners Tuesday at the 2008 Australian Open.

Nadal prevailed in a tough first set on Day 9 on his way to a 7-5, 6-3, 6-1 decision against 24th-seeded Finn Jarkko Nieminen. The match lasted 2 hours, 19 minutes, as Nadal landed in his first-ever Aussie Open semifinal by breaking Nieminen's serve six times, compared to only one break in eight break-point chances for the overmatched Finn.

"It's a good moment for me -- being my first semifinals on hardcourt at a Grand Slam," Nadal said.

The three-time French Open champion and two-time Wimbledon runner-up Nadal is now 4-0 lifetime against Nieminen.

Nadal's final four opponent here will be Tsonga, who erased 14th-seeded Russian Mikhail Youzhny 7-5, 6-0, 7-6 (8-6) to secure a berth in his first- ever Grand Slam semi. Tsonga is the first unseeded French semifinalist here since Nicolas Escude turned the trick 10 years ago...Full Story

Nadal eases into Aussie quarters; Davydenko out

Melbourne, Australia (Sports Network) - Rafael Nadal easily moved into the Australian Open quarterfinals on Sunday when Paul-Henri Mathieu retired in the second set of their fourth-round match, but Nikolay Davydenko was among the upset victims as the first week of the year's first major concluded.

The second-seeded Nadal had built a 6-4, 3-0 lead when Mathieu called it quits for what appeared to be a calf problem. The 23rd-seeded Frenchman twice received treatment in the first set, then decided he couldn't continue after dropping serve twice in the second.

Nadal will next meet Finland's Jarkko Nieminen in the quarterfinals. Nieminen knocked off Germany's Philipp Kohlschreiber, 3-6, 7-6 (9-7), 7-6 (11-9), 6-3. Kohlschreiber had eliminated sixth-seeded American Andy Roddick in his last match and was coming off a title in Auckland last week.

Nieminen, seeded 24th, saved a combined 11 set points between the second and third sets before advancing...Fulls Story

Youzhny shocks Nadal in Chennai final

Chennai, India (Sports Network) - Russian Mikhail Youzhny stunned top-seeded Rafael Nadal in straight sets to win the Chennai Open final on Sunday.
The fourth-seeded Youzhny blitzed Nadal from the outset and was never threatened in an easy 6-0, 6-1 victory.
It was the fourth career singles title for Youzhny, who is ranked 19th in the world. He won once last year at Rotterdam and was also a finalist twice in 2007.
Nadal, who had a banner 2007 campaign with six titles, was attempting to garner his 24th career crown. But, the Spaniard looked lost from the start and was clearly suffering the effects of his grueling four-hour semifinal win over fellow Spaniard Carlos Moya on Saturday.
The 25-year-old Youzhny upended Nadal for the fourth time in 10-career matchups and snapped a three-match skid against Nadal.

Nadal, Djokovic both lose at Masters Cup

Shanghai, China (Sports Network) - Two of the world's top-three players suffered round-robin losses on Tuesday, as Rafael Nadal succumbed to fellow Spaniard David Ferrer and Serbian Novak Djokovic gave way to Frenchman Richard Gasquet at the $3.7 million Tennis Masters Cup.
A sixth-seeded Ferrer secured a berth in Saturday's semifinals here by coming from behind to beat the second-seeded Nadal 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, while the eighth- seeded Gasquet whipped a third-seeded Djokovic 6-4, 6-2. Nadal is the reigning three-time French Open champion and Wimbledon runner-up, while Djokovic was this year's U.S. Open runner-up.
Ferrer ran out to a 5-1 third-set lead against Nadal here on Day 3 and ultimately prevailed in 2 hours, 40 minutes. Ferrer managed to record one more service break than Nadal, as he piled up a whopping six en route to the big victory at this exclusive eight-player event....Full Story

Nadal, Ferrer win Masters Cup openers

Shanghai, China (Sports Network) - Rafael Nadal recovered from a shaky start to best Frenchman Richard Gasquet in the opening match at the Tennis Masters Cup on Sunday.
The French Open champion dropped the first set to Gasquet but steadied himself over the final two frames to win, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4, on the indoor hardcourt at Shanghai's state-of-the-art Qi Zhong Stadium. Nadal, the World No. 2, has now beaten Gasquet four consecutive times in his career.
Later, David Ferrer upset Serbia's Novak Djokovic in the second Gold Group match, making it a perfect day for Spain. The underrated Ferrer doused Djokovic in straight sets, 6-4, 6-4.
Swiss great Roger Federer, who headlines the Red Group, is the defending champion here and starts his bid for a fourth Masters Cup title in five years on Monday.
The top-seeded/world No. 1 Federer is joined in a very tough Red Group by No. 4 Russian Nikolay Davydenko, No. 5 American Andy Roddick and No. 7 Chilean Fernando Gonzalez...Full Story

Nadal ends Baghdatis' run; Gasquet loses but reaches Masters Cup

Paris, France (Sports Network) - Rafael Nadal rallied from a set down to beat Marcos Baghdatis of Cyprus in Saturday's opening semifinal match at the Paris Masters.
The second-seeded Nadal earned a 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 victory to reach the final, where he will play Argentina's David Nalbandian, a 6-2, 6-4 winner over 10th- seeded Frenchman Richard Gasquet in the day's second semifinal.
Not only did Nadal eliminate Baghdatis, but he also ended the Cypriot's run toward a possible berth in the season-ending Tennis Masters Cup. Baghdatis needed to win this tournament and not have Gasquet reach the final to qualify for the elite eight-man tournament that starts November 11 in Shanghai.
Instead, Gasquet completed the field before even taking the court Saturday.
Baghdatis' setback turned out to be good for Gasquet, as Nalbandian needed just 68 minutes to move into his second straight Masters final. He beat Roger Federer for the Madrid Masters title last month, also toppling Nadal in the quarterfinals on his way to that crown...Full Story

Nadal advances to Paris semifinals

Paris, France (Sports Network) - Rafael Nadal was among the quarterfinal winners on Friday in the Paris Masters.
The second-seeded Nadal continued his quest for the title at the $2.45 million tournament with an easy 6-4, 6-2 victory over Russian Mikhail Youzhny.
Nadal has yet to lose a set during his two matches in his first appearance at this hard court event and is seeking to win his seventh title this season.
"It was an important match for me to be in the semifinals after the US Open," said Nadal. "Especially after Montreal. I'm so happy to come back and play one tournament like this. The last two matches have been very good, very good matches for me."
The Spaniard is the highest remaining seed after world No. 1 Roger Federer was defeated by Argentine David Nalbandian in the third round on Thursday...Full Story

Nadal cruises into fourth round at the Open

Flushing Meadows, NY (Sports Network) - Spaniard Rafael Nadal rebounded from a tough first set to earn a straight-set victory, 7-6 (7-3), 6-2, 6-1, over Jo-Wilfried Tsonga on Sunday at the U.S. Open.
Nadal, the second seed in the tournament, downed France's Tsonga to reach the fourth round of the Open.
Also advancing on Sunday was Nadal's countryman David Ferrer, the 15th seed, who outlasted 24th-seeded David Nalbandian of Argentina, 6-3, 3-6, 4-6, 7-6 (7-5), 7-5. Juan Ignacio Chela, Nalbandian's countryman, did not suffer a similar fate, as he upended Croatian Ivan Ljubicic, the No. 12 seed, 6-4, 6-7 (5-7), 2-6, 6-3, 6-3.
Juan Monaco, the 23rd-seed, also advanced, downed Agustin Calleri 7-6 (7-5), 6-2, 6-4, in an all-Argentinian third-round matchup.

Nadal moves into Stuttgart final

Stuttgart, Germany (Sports Network) - Top-seeded Rafael Nadal advanced to the final at the Mercedes Cup after posting a victory in the semifinals on Saturday.
Nadal, who won this title in 2005, defeated fellow Spaniard Feliciano Lopez, 6-1, 7-5. Nadal has now won 92 of his last 93 matches on clay and is aiming for his sixth title of the year and 23rd overall.
Nadal will meet Stanislas Wawrinka of Switzerland in Sunday's final after Wawrinka upset seventh-seeded Juan Ignacio Chela of Argentina 6-7 (2-7), 6-4, 6-1.
Wawrinka has just one ATP title to his credit, capturing the crown last year in Umag.
Nadal and Wawrinka have met just once before with the Spaniard winning at this year's Australian Open.

Federer, Nadal reach semis; Roddick falls in Wimbledon quarters

Wimbledon, England (Sports Network) - Reigning four-time champion Roger Federer and last year's runner-up Rafael Nadal charged into the semifinals, while two-time finalist Andy Roddick lost to talented Frenchman Richard Gasquet in Friday's quarterfinal action at Wimbledon.
The top-seeded/world No. 1 Federer needed two days to get past 20th-seeded former top-ranked star Juan Carlos Ferrero 7-6 (7-2), 3-6, 6-1, 6-3 on the famed Centre Court. The match was tied at 5-5 in the first set here on Thursday when rain halted play for the day.
Federer prevailed in 2 hours, 16 minutes with the help of 15 aces among his 51 winners and five service breaks. The 27-year-old Ferrero recorded 32 fewer winners and only broke Federer's serve on two occasions.
The high-flying Swiss, now 36-4 lifetime at the All England Club, wound up dropping his first set of the fortnight against the Spanish Ferrero, the 2003 French Open champion.
"OK, a set is lost, but a match isn't lost," Federer said.
This marks Federer's first result here in a week, as the combination of a scheduled day off, inclement weather and a withdrawal by his scheduled fourth- round opponent, Tommy Haas, kept him idle here for five days.
"It was hard for me," said Federer. "I had many days off. I'm just really happy I came through it and I'm back in the rhythm now."
Federer's grass-court winning streak is now up to 52, including a 32-match string here at the All England Club. The super Swiss already owns 10 Grand Slam titles and is trying to become only the second man in the Open Era to capture five straight Wimbledon championships. Swedish icon Bjorn Borg turned the trick here from 1976-80.
The 25-year-old Federer has appeared in a record eight straight Grand Slam finals and landed in the semifinals in his last 13 majors. He beat Nadal in last year's Wimbledon finale and lost to the Spaniard in the last two French Open title bouts.
Federer, who's also the reigning Australian and U.S. Open champ, will meet the surprising Gasquet in Saturday's semifinals.
A second-seeded Nadal, the reigning three-time French Open champion, reached his second straight Wimbledon semi by dousing seventh-seeded Czech Tomas Berdych 7-6 (7-1), 6-4, 6-2 on Centre Court on Day 11 here.
Nadal moved on in 2 hours, 7 minutes with the help of 30 unforced errors by his fellow 21-year-old Berdych. The powerful Spaniard also piled up four key breaks, compared to only one for his 6-foot-5 counterpart.
Unlike the well-rested Federer, Nadal played for a fifth straight day here on Friday.
Nadal's semifinal opponent will be rapidly-rising Serbian star Novak Djokovic, who lost to Nadal in last month's French Open semis. The Spaniard is 4-1 lifetime against the Serb, including a 3-1 record this season.
A 12th-seeded Gasquet came all the way back to stun the third-seeded Roddick 4-6, 4-6, 7-6 (7-2), 7-6 (7-3), 8-6 on Court 1. Roddick was up two sets and 4-2 in the third when Gasquet mounted an unlikely comeback.
Roddick won his first 14 sets at this fortnight before Gasquet turned their round-of-eight match around on Friday.
Gasquet stunned Roddick in 3 hours, 34 minutes. The Frenchman actually struck more aces than the massive-serving American (23-22) and piled up 33 more winners (93-60) than Roddick.
The 24-year-old Roddick is a former world No. 1 and captured his lone Grand Slam title at the U.S. Open in 2003. He lost to Federer in the 2004 and 2005 Wimbledon finals.
Gasquet, who had never won a five-set match before Friday, will meet Federer for a seventh time, with the supreme Swiss holding a 5-1 all-time advantage. Federer beat Gasquet in the first round at Wimbledon a year ago and has won five straight matches in their series.
The 21-year-old Gasquet will perform in his first-ever major semi on Saturday.
In another marathon quarterfinal on Friday, a fourth-seeded Djokovic landed in his second semi in the last two majors by outlasting 10th-seeded Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (11-9), 6-7 (3-7), 4-6, 7-5 on Court 1. A fatigued Djokovic needed five hours to sneak past the 2006 Wimbledon semifinalist Baghdatis. The victory marked the fourth-longest match in modern Wimbledon history. And the longest Wimbledon singles match ever played on one day lasted only five minutes longer than this Djokovic-Baghdatis epic.
Djokovic recorded a huge service break to grab a 6-5 lead in the fifth set and closed out a game Baghdatis by holding his quality serve in the 12th game of the stanza. The Serb fired 12 aces among his 58 winners on Day 11. The Cypriot struck 16 more winners than Djokovic, but also piled up 10 more unforced errors (60-50) in the disappointing setback.
A weary Djokovic played 9 hours, 12 minutes of tennis over the last two days here. He required 4 hours, 12 minutes to stave off former Wimbledon champion Lleyton Hewitt here on Thursday and required some on-court treatment from a tour trainer on Friday.

Nadal, Djokovic fight to reach Wimbledon quarters

Wimbledon, England (Sports Network) - Last year's runner-up Rafael Nadal battled all the way back to win his fourth-round match Thursday and reach the quarterfinals at Wimbledon. Rising Serbian star Novak Djokovic also secured a berth in the round of eight by taking out former champion Lleyton Hewitt in a dramatic bout.
The second-seeded Nadal fought back after dropping the first two sets to defeat 14th-seeded Russian Mikhail Youzhny 4-6, 3-6, 6-1, 6-2, 6-2. The capable Youzhny was slowed by a back problem over the final three sets.
Nadal needed 3 hours, 5 minutes to record his comeback, which he did with the help of six service breaks. The Spaniard played a clean match by committing a mere 18 unforced errors over five sets.
The reigning three-time French Open champ Nadal was last year's Wimbledon runner-up to the great Roger Federer and lost to Youzhny in the 2006 U.S. Open quarters.
Nadal's quarterfinal opponent on Friday will be seventh-seeded Czech Tomas Berdych, who topped 19th-seeded Swedish veteran Jonas Bjorkman 6-4, 6-0, 6-7 (6-8), 6-0.
Berdych fired 15 aces at the ageless Bjorkman, who failed to break his Czech counterpart's serve while Berdych piled up a whopping seven breaks of the Swede. Berdych also struck 31 more winners (48-17) than the overmatched Bjorkman.
The 35-year-old Bjorkman reached the Wimbledon semis last year, only to be destroyed by the amazing Federer.
The 6-foot-5 Berdych will now appear in his first-ever Grand Slam quarterfinal.
A fourth-seeded Djokovic fought his way into the quarters by holding off a 16th-seeded Hewitt 7-6 (10-8), 7-6 (7-2), 4-6, 7-6 (7-5).
Djokovic moved on by converting on his third match point against the gritty Hewitt. The Serb needed 4 hours, 12 minutes to dismiss Hewitt, who withstood a barrage of 56 winners, including 17 aces, from Djokovic, who also piled up 49 unforced errors on Day 10.
The former world No. 1 Hewitt captured the second of his two Grand Slam event titles here Wimbledon in 2002.
Djokovic reached the French Open semifinals last month, only to lose to the reigning king of clay Nadal.
Also advancing to the quarters was 10th-seeded Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis, who upended sixth-seeded Russian Nikolay Davydenko 7-6 (7-5), 7-6 (7-5), 6-3. The 2006 Australian Open finalist Baghdatis reached the Wimbledon semis last season.
Baghdatis advanced in 2 hours, 9 minutes, as he broke Davydenko's serve six times while the Russian piled up 39 unforced errors.