Tennis: Nadal, Barty give Australian Open desperately needed happy ending

MELBOURNE, Australia -- An Australian Open like no other began in controversy with the deportation of Novak Djokovic but culminated in one of the greatest comebacks in tennis history by Rafael Nadal on Sunday. 

Throw in Ashleigh Barty becoming the first home winner for 44 years, and local heroes Nick Kyrgios and Thanasi Kokkinakis winning the men's doubles, this was a Grand Slam that will live long in the memory for myriad reasons.

After the chaos that preceded the tournament, Tennis Australia couldn't have dreamt of a happier ending -- and it was one they desperately needed, after a competition riddled with unforced errors on the organizers' parts. 

It began with the spectacle of the nine-time Australian Open champion Djokovic being detained in a notorious immigration hotel, suffering multiple court cases and eventual deportation -- shocking no matter which side you sit in the Covid-19 vaccination debate.

When the first serve at Melbourne Park was struck on January 17, the world number one was in a Dubai airport transit lounge waiting for his connecting flight home to Belgrade.

It wasn't just the Djokovic saga that cast a shadow over the first Grand Slam tournament of 2022. 

Tennis Australia had to make a hasty and embarrassing U-turn after instructing staff to prevent spectators wearing "Where is Peng Shuai?" T-shirts to highlight concern for the Chinese player.

They also had to justify a largely voluntary Covid-19 testing protocol that came in for criticism from some players, notably world number three Alexander Zverev.

They may count themselves extremely lucky that there were only a handful of virus cases.

- Booing and screaming -

Tennis Australia will no doubt bask in the glory of their two historic champions, Nadal and Barty. 

Tournament director Craig Tiley was beaming through his mask during the presentation ceremonies.

But as a central figure in the pre-tournament chaos he, or his successor, must make sure the extraordinary scenes in the run-up to the tournament are never repeated.

Crowds were back in numbers after days of pandemic-enforced empty arenas the year before, but spectators came in for flak for their raucous behavior.

Kyrgios's opponents in particular complained of yobbish jeering, whipped up by the Australian bad boy. 

And in the final, booing and screaming between serves to try to put off Daniil Medvedev made Rod Laver Arena seem more like Madrid during a Davis Cup tie -- a feverishly pro-Nadal cauldron.

The atmosphere degenerated further as the beer began to talk ever louder, with the epic match grinding on past 1:00 am Monday. 

Medvedev became agitated, Nadal had to appeal for calm and the chair umpire had to threaten miscreants with removal by security staff.

- Monumental achievement -

But in the end, the abiding memory will be of Nadal's monumental achievement in winning that unprecedented 21st Grand Slam after an astonishing final lasting 5hr 24min.

It was Nadal's second Australian Open, but came 13 years after his first. 

It was his first win from two sets down in almost 15 years, and a first in a Slam final.

When he touched down in Melbourne, the 35-year-old had played no competitive tennis since early August because of a chronic foot injury. 

Eleven unbeaten matches later he has two more tournament wins and has moved ahead of Djokovic and Roger Federer as the all-time men's Grand Slam leader.

The absence of that pair -- Federer through injury, Djokovic through deportation -- will mean detractors will try to diminish Nadal's achievement, unparalleled as it is in the men's game. 

Surely to be the best, you have to beat the best? 

Nadal has good cause to say he did. 

Medvedev, the Russian world number two, blew Djokovic away in New York four months earlier to prevent the Serbian becoming first to strike 21.

The de facto top seed, Medvedev is 10 years Nadal's junior, was the most recent Grand Slam champion and looked unstoppable as he led by two sets and held three break points in the third.

TV's computerised "Win Predictor" put Nadal's chances of triumphing from there at four percent. 

But though Nadal was down, he was not quite out. 

Slowly his determination and sheer will to win enabled him to claw the match back from the brink. 

The result was on a knife-edge until the dying moments, and could have gone either way in the final set as the pair exchanged multiple service breaks.

But in the end four percent was all Nadal, and the Australian Open, needed.

Agence France-Presse

No. 1 Novak Djokovic faces No. 2 Rafael Nadal in Australian Open final

MELBOURNE, Australia — The showdown between No. 1 Novak Djokovic and No. 2 Rafael Nadal in the Australian Open final is their 53rd meeting on tour.

Djokovic will be trying to win the hard-court tournament for the record seventh time. He’s also bidding for a 15th Grand Slam trophy overall and third in a row.


For Nadal, Sunday’s match is a chance to win his second title at Melbourne Park. He’ll also be eyeing an 18th major championship, which would move him within two of Roger Federer’s men’s mark.

Nadal has not lost a set in the tournament so far.

When they met in the 2012 Australian Open final, Djokovic won in 5 hours, 53 minutes, the longest Grand Slam title match in history.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Rafael Nadal, Maria Sharapova advance in straight sets at Australian Open

MELBOURNE, Australia — Rafael Nadal has missed a lot of tennis since last September. He hasn’t missed a beat.

The No. 2-seeded Nadal had a 6-4, 6-3, 7-5 win over Australian wild-card entry James Duckworth on Monday in the first round of the Australian Open, his first match back on Rod Laver Arena since he had to retire in his quarterfinal match last year.

The 17-time major winner hasn’t played since retiring from his semifinal at the U.S. Open because of a knee injury, and then had surgery on his right ankle in November. He withdrew from a warm-up tournament in Brisbane in the first week of the season because of a muscle strain in his thigh.

“Not easy to come back after a lot of months of competition, especially against a player playing super aggressive every shot,” Nadal said. “It’s very difficult to start after an injury — I know it very well. It’s very special to be back.”

Wearing a sleeveless top, he showed no signs of any issues against Duckworth. His only hiccup came when he served for the match in the ninth game of the third set and was broken at love. He returned the favor very quickly, though, to seal his spot in the second round.

Nadal has only lost twice in the first round at Grand Slams — to Steve Darcis at 2013 Wimbledon, and to Fernando Verdasco here in 2016 — and is aiming to be the first man in the Open era two win all four majors at least twice.

Maria Sharapova has the second-best record among active women’s players in first-round matches at the majors, and she gave an illustration of why that’s the case with a ruthless 6-0, 6-0 win over Harriet Dart.

The 2008 Australian Open champion got play started on Rod Laver Arena and needed only 63 minutes to advance.

In her 15th trip to Melbourne Park and her 55th Grand Slam tournament, she’s acutely aware of the toll that the sun and long early matches can have on a player’s title ambitions, so she gets straight to business.

The 22-year-old Dart, playing in the main draw of a major for only the second time after getting a wildcard to play last year at Wimbledon, only got a look at one break point in the match — when Sharapova served a double-fault in the second set. She got seven of her 29 points from Sharapova’s double-faults.

Sharapova said she was still feeling pain in her right shoulder despite sitting out the end of last season after the U.S. Open.

Stung by a first-round loss at Wimbledon last year, Sharapova said she couldn’t afford to feel any empathy for Dart.

“I mean, there is no time for that, I’m sorry to say … when you’re playing the first round of a Grand Slam,” she said. “I think I was just focused on not having a letdown.

“I think it’s very easy to be in a position where things are flowing, you know, you’re doing all the right things, she’s making a few errors, you’re comfortable, easy to get complacent, and, you know, complacency is not great. I was glad that I did the right things from the beginning till the end.”

Up next for Sharapova is Rebecca Peterson, who beat Sorana Cirstea, 6-4, 6-1.

Also advancing were 2017 U.S. Open champion Sloane Stephens, No. 11 Aryna Sabalenka, No. 19 Caroline Garcia, No. 29 Donna Vekic and No. 31 Petra Martic.

Danielle Collins advanced to the second round of a major for the first time following a 2-6, 7-6 (5), 6-4 win over No. 14-seeded Julia Goerges, who won the title in Auckland to start the season.

Katie Boulter earned the distinction of winning the first 10-point tiebreaker under the Australian Open’s new system for deciding sets.

Boulter beat Ekaterina Makarova 6-0, 4-6, 7-6 (6), including 10-6 in the tiebreaker. The new rule was introduced to ensure matches don’t get too lengthy — previously the third set in women’s matches and the fifth set in men’s matches at the Australian Open had to be decided by a two-game advantage.

Fifth-seeded Kevin Anderson won his first match at Melbourne Park since 2015 when he beat Adrian Mannarino 6-3, 5-7, 6-2, 6-1. Also advancing on the men’s side were No. 19 Nikoloz Basilashvili and No. 26 Fernando Verdasco.

Defending champions Caroline Wozniacki and Roger Federer were scheduled to play night matches later Monday.

source: sports.inquirer.net

7-time champ Serena Williams gets smooth draw at Wimbledon

LONDON — Serena Williams avoided any early matchups against opponents with success to speak of at Wimbledon in a draw on Friday that could put her against No. 5 seed Elina Svitolina in the third round.

Williams is returning to the grass-court tournament for the first time since 2016 after missing it last year while pregnant. She gave birth to a daughter in September.

She is ranked outside the top 150, but the All England Club decided to seed her 25th based on past success, which includes collecting seven of her 23 Grand Slam singles trophies at Wimbledon. Williams’ first-round opponent when play begins on Monday will be 107th-ranked Arantxa Rus of the Netherlands, who has one career tour title.


Williams is competing for the first time since she pulled out of the French Open ahead of a fourth-round showdown against five-time major champion Maria Sharapova in early June, citing an injured chest muscle. That was Williams’ return to Grand Slam action after a 16-month absence.

Rus has only once been as far as Wimbledon’s third round, back in 2012. That was the last time she won a match at the All England Club. She was beaten in the first round of qualifying a year ago, as were both of the women Williams could meet in the second round, 136th-ranked qualifier Viktoriya Tomova of Bulgaria and 167th-ranked wild-card recipient Tereza Smitkova of the Czech Republic.

Svitolina has only once been as far as the fourth round.

Williams’ possible fourth-round opponent, 2017 U.S. Open runner-up Madison Keys, made one quarterfinal appearance, while the 36-year-old American’s potential quarterfinal foe, reigning Australian Open champion Caroline Wozniacki, has never been beyond the fourth round.

Williams could face her older sister, five-time champion and 2017 runner-up Venus, in the semifinals. The ninth-seeded Venus Williams opens against 62nd-ranked Johanna Larsson of Sweden, who is 0-7 at Wimbledon.

The Williams sisters are not in the doubles draw. They have won 14 Grand Slam titles as a pair, including six at Wimbledon.

In the top half of the women’s singles bracket, the quarterfinals could be French Open champion Simona Halep vs. two-time Wimbledon winner Petra Kvitova, and defending champ Garbine Muguruza vs. No. 6 Caroline Garcia. In the bottom half, No. 2 Wozniacki was drawn to face Svitolina, while 2017 U.S. Open champion Sloane Stephens could play No. 7 Karolina Pliskova.

The potential men’s quarterfinals in the top half are eight-time champion Roger Federer vs. 2017 U.S. Open runner-up Kevin Anderson, and 2014 U.S. Open champion Marin Cilic vs. No. 6 seed Grigor Dimitrov. In the bottom half of the bracket, it could be two-time Wimbledon winner Rafael Nadal vs. 2009 U.S. Open champion Juan Martin del Potro, and No. 4 Alexander Zverev vs. No. 7 Dominic Thiem.



Two-time champion Andy Murray will face 48th-ranked Benoit Paire in the first round. It’s a rematch of Murray’s fourth-round victory over the Frenchman at the All England Club in 2017.

That was Murray’s last win before he sat out nearly a year because of an injured hip that was surgically repaired in January.

He returned to action last week and so is ranked only 156th and unseeded at Wimbledon, which he won in 2013 and 2016.

Murray could face 26th-seeded Denis Shapovalov of Canada in the second round.

The top-seeded Federer’s opening opponent on Monday will be 57th-ranked Dusan Lajovic of Serbia. Their only previous meeting anywhere came in Wimbledon’s second round last year, when Federer won in straight sets en route to the title.

No. 2 seed Nadal, whose 17 Grand Slam titles trail only Federer’s 20 among men, faces 129th-ranked Dudi Sela of Israel on Tuesday. Nadal has won both of their previous matchups.

Men’s first-rounders to keep an eye on include Dimitrov against three-time major champion Stan Wawrinka, who is still working his way back into form after knee surgery; 12-time major champ Novak Djokovic against Australian Open quarterfinalist Tennys Sandgren of the U.S.; and No. 23 Richard Gasquet against Gael Monfils in a matchup of Frenchmen.

Two women who lost a Wimbledon final against Serena Williams will meet in the first round when former No. 1 and two-time major champion Angelique Kerber plays qualifier Vera Zvonareva. Kerber was the runner-up in 2016, Zvonereva in 2010.

Sharapova, the 2004 Wimbledon champion who is seeded 24th, could face 2017 French Open champion and 12th-seeded Jelena Ostapenko in the third round, and Kvitova in the fourth.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Nadal cruises into Barcelona Open quarterfinals

BARCELONA, Spain— Rafael Nadal cruised into the Barcelona Open quarterfinals by defeating fellow Spaniard Guillermo Garcia-Lopez 6-1, 6-3 on Thursday.

The top-ranked Nadal converted on his second match point to clinch his 16th straight victory on clay and set up an encounter with Martin Klizan, who eliminated Novak Djokovic in the second round.

“I came out with the conviction that I could play a lot better than I did yesterday (against Roberto Carballes Baena), and that’s what happened,” Nadal said.

Coming off his 11th Monte Carlo title, Nadal has won 11 of his 12 ATP Tour matches this season, with the only loss coming from an injury retirement in the Australian Open quarterfinals.

He has won 40 consecutive sets on clay to extend his own record, and has won 33 of his last 34 matches on the dirt.

“I had more options in the second set but a player like Nadal doesn’t give you many chances,” the 69th-ranked Garcia-Lopez said.

Nadal needs to win his 11th Barcelona title this week to retain his No. 1 ranking.

Klizan, the 140th-ranked Slovak who defeated Nadal in Beijing in 2014, reached the last eight by ousting veteran Feliciano Lopez 6-1, 6-4.

Second-seeded Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria saved two match points to defeat Malek Jaziri of Tunisia 7-5, 3-6, 7-6 (8), while third-seeded Dominic Thiem of Austria got past Jozef Kovalik of Slovakia 7-6 (5), 6-2 for his 12th win in 15 clay-court matches this season.

David Goffin of Belgium made it to the quarterfinals by coming from behind to defeat Karen Khachanov of Russia 2-6, 7-6 (2), 6-0, and 19-year-old Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece upset local Albert Ramos-Vinolas 6-4, 7-5.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Nadal credits passion and overcoming injuries for success

BEIJING — Passion, and overcoming injuries, are the key to Rafael Nadal’s recent success.

The top-ranked Spaniard won the French Open and the U.S. Open this year, and reclaimed the No. 1 spot from Andy Murray. His next event is the China Open.

“I had some injuries, but good thing is I keep having the passion for the game and the love for what I am doing and the spirit of overcome tough situations in terms of physical issues,” the Spaniard said. “Of course, the spirit of improvement: every day when I wake up, going on court with the goal of doing something better than what I was doing.”

Nadal will open against Lucas Pouille on Tuesday at the China Open. The Frenchman beat Nadal in their previous meeting last year.

Nadal is 56-9 this season. He leads the tour with five ATP singles titles and will be trying to add this year’s China Open title to the one he took home as a teenager in 2005.

Nadal has made the tournament’s final in three of his six earlier appearances and has a 20-5 record in Beijing.

In the first round on Monday, top-ranked Garbine Muguruza retired from her opening match with a cold.
Muguruza dropped the first set 6-2 and was trailing 2-0 against Barbora Strycova when she decided to stop.

“I couldn’t perform today,” said the Spaniard, who said she picked up a virus at the Wuhan Open last week but wanted to try to play despite her illness. “I don’t want to retire before the tournament starts for me.”

Also, U.S. Open champion Sloane Stephens was beaten by Christina McHale 6-3, 6-0.

“It was a tough day,” Stephens said. “There’s not really much to say about. Obviously not a great match, so just forget about it and try to move on.”

In other women’s matches, former No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki beat Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-2, 6-2, while Peng Shuai, Elena Vesnina, Elise Mertens, Coco Vandeweghe and Alize Cornet also won.

Men’s winners included fifth-seeded Roberto Bautista Agut, Mischa Zverev, Steve Darcis, Fabio Fognini and Aljaz Bedene.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Nadal notches Olympic gold, ‘unforgettable’ return

RIO DE JANEIRO—Rafael Nadal described his second Olympic gold as “unforgettable” after marking his return from his latest injury misery by partnering close friend Marc Lopez to the men’s doubles title in Rio.

The 30-year-old Spaniard added the 2016 doubles crown to his 2008 singles gold in Beijing by defeating Romania’s Florin Mergea and Horia Tecau 6-2, 3-6, 4-6.

Nadal is just the fourth player to win gold in Olympic singles and doubles after Serena and Venus Williams and Chile’s Nicolas Massu.

The former world number one and holder of 14 Grand Slam titles was playing his first tournament since May when a wrist injury forced an early retirement from the French Open.

“It was an amazing experience, especially doing it with one of my best friends, with Marc, it’s something unforgettable for me, for both of us,” said Nadal.

“To win a gold medal after two months and a half with no practice, with no preparation, just working in the gym, is something that is a dream.

“The moment was unbelievable, and we had fun. We fight hard.”

Nadal’s participation in the Olympics was in doubt until the last minute but now he has one gold and the prospect of another in the men’s singles where he’s reached the semi-finals.

Earlier Friday, he defeated Brazil’s Thomaz Bellucci 2-6, 6-4, 6-2 for his 800th career singles win.

He will face Juan Martín Del Potro of Argentina on Saturday for a place in the championship match.

“It’s a dream to win for my country. I didn’t come here just to carry the flag at the opening ceremony,” added Nadal.

‘Happiest man on earth’

For 34-year-old Lopez, it was a second major title of 2016 after he partnered compatriot Feliciano Lopez to the French Open title in June.

“Sharing these feelings with Rafa is really a dream come true,” said Lopez, who has now won five doubles titles with Nadal.

“All the things we have done together, I am the happiest man on earth.”

Tecau paid tribute to Nadal whose all-court skills proved crucial.

“You don’t see this in singles, but he volleys really well. He moves a lot at the net, puts a lot of pressure, defends really well,” said Tecau.

“He can hit an angle in every shot. And he’s all over the court. You have to play with precision and play to win most of the time. Otherwise you’re going to give him a lot of shots and that’s what he likes. Then he takes control of the points.”

The Spanish pair had cruised through the first set of the final 6-2 on the back of breaks in the fifth and seventh games.

But Mergea and Tecau, giving Romania their first ever Olympic tennis medal, hit back, focussing their attack on Lopez.

They broke for a 3-1 lead and saved two break-back points in the ninth game to level the final on a chilly night in the Brazilian city.

Mergea and Tecau, both 31 and born within a week of each other, sensed victory when they nipped ahead at 4-3 in the decider with Lopez again broken.

But the Spanish duo regained the break at 4-4 when Tecau was broken. Nadal then held for a 5-4 lead.

The Romanian pair saved two championship points in the 10th game but a wild Tecau smash gave Nadal and Lopez the title after two and a half hours of action.

The Spaniards’ all-out attack and rock-solid defence were crucial forcing their opponents into making 46 unforced errors and having to save 12 of 16 break points they faced.

America’s Steve Johnson and Jack Sock defeated Daniel Nestor and Vasek Pospisil, the Canadian seventh seeds, 6-2, 6-4 to claim the bronze medal.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Nadal back in Paris, no title to defend, no Federer to face

PARIS — Through the years, Rafael Nadal grew accustomed to a couple of givens at the French Open: He would arrive as the defending champion, and Roger Federer would be somewhere in the draw, often awaiting a showdown in the final.

This time around, neither is the case.

Federer withdrew a few days before Sunday’s start of the clay-court Grand Slam tournament, ending his record run of 65 consecutive major appearances.

“For the fans, for the tournament, for the world (of) tennis, in general, is … very negative news, no?” Nadal said.

Nadal won the title at Roland Garros every year from 2005-08 and from 2010-14 — a record nine in all, beating Federer in four of those finals — but returns to town trying to earn back the trophy after relinquishing it in 2015.

He is seeded fourth.

“It’s a tournament that I know I can play well,” said Nadal, who lost in the quarterfinals to Novak Djokovic a year ago. “If I am playing well, I know I can do good things.”

Nadal, who owns 14 major championships in all, could face No. 1 Djokovic in about two weeks in the semifinals — on what would be the Spaniard’s 30th birthday.

Asked about that milestone, Nadal waxed philosophical.

“You know, time never stops. Nobody stops the time,” he said. “That’s not a good thing, but at the same time, I am happy with my life. I enjoyed all these years on the tour, and I hope to keep enjoying the next couple of years.”

After dealing with health problems and a crisis of confidence last season, Nadal has been playing better on his favorite red clay of late.

He is 19-4 on the surface this season, including titles at Monte Carlo and Barcelona. Not bad, but not up to his old standards. In his past two tournaments, Nadal lost in the Madrid semifinals to Andy Murray, and the Rome quarterfinals to Djokovic.

“A lot of tournaments in a row playing well,” said Nadal, who faces Sam Groth in the first round in Paris. “I need to just keep going.”

Other things to know about the French Open, which begins Sunday:

Serena’s ‘drought’

Much was made of Serena Williams’ title in Rome last weekend being her first trophy in nine months. She does not consider that gap a big deal.

“I guess when you win all the time, if you go a couple of tournaments and don’t win them, it’s like you’re in a drought,” Williams said.

She is the defending champion and seeded No. 1 at Roland Garros, and another title would be her 22nd at a Grand Slam tournament, equaling Steffi Graf for the most in the Open era, which started in 1968.

Security stepped up

From patdowns at entrance gates to a 25 percent rise in the number of security agents, there is an obvious increase in protective measures at the tournament, about six months after terrorist attacks around the French capital.

“I notice more security pretty much everywhere,” No. 2-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska said.

Olympic push

A Grand Slam tournament is a Grand Slam tournament, so there is plenty at stake as always over the next 15 days, but there is an added incentive for some players: the Rio de Janeiro Olympics.

The ATP and WTA rankings of June 6 — the day after the men’s final in Paris — will be the basis for Summer Games qualification.

Doping talk

Two recent events put the topic of performance-enhancing drugs on the table in tennis.

Maria Sharapova’s positive test for meldonium and provisional suspension are keeping her out of the field at a tournament she won in 2012 and 2014.

And Nadal filed a defamation lawsuit in Paris last month against France’s former minister for health and sport, Roselyne Bachelot, after she said on a television show the player’s seven-month injury absence in 2012 probably was due to a positive drug test.

Cheating

A report about whether tennis was doing enough to investigate possible corruption stirred things up at the start of the Australian Open in January.

While the chatter has mostly subsided, the French Open revoked the wild-card entry granted to a French player, Constant Lestienne, because the Tennis Integrity Unit said he violated a rule.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Federer absence a ‘loss’ for French Open

World number one Novak Djokovic headed a cast of leading players expressing their disappointment on Friday at Roger Federer’s injury-enforced withdrawal from this year’s French Open.

Federer’s absence was a primary topic of conversation at Roland Garros with the 17-time major winner announcing he would miss the tournament after failing to recover from a back injury, bringing an end to his astonishing run of 65 consecutive Grand Slams.

“It’s definitely a loss for the tournament,” lamented Djokovic. “We’re definitely not used to seeing Roger skipping Grand Slams,” he added, with Federer missing a major tournament for the first time since the 1999 US Open.

“Obviously the nature of his injury is not light, and it kept him off this tournament that I’m sure that if there was any chance he could play he would participate.”

Nine-time champion Rafael Nadal said Federer’s absence was a blow to tennis fans, but the Spaniard admitted it wouldn’t personally impact his preparations.

“I think for me it is not changing much. But I understand that for the fans, for the tournament, for the world in tennis in general it’s very negative news,” said the world number five.

“Every tournament that a big player like him is not able to play is negative news for the world of tennis.”

Serena Williams, who like Federer will turn 35 later this year, hailed the Swiss star’s longevity and conceded it would be strange not to see the 2009 French Open champion in Paris.

“I think he plays most slams, so definitely — 65 in a row? That’s a lot.

“I think it’s just pretty awesome, but it means he cares about his future and the Olympics this year and Wimbledon and US Open. He probably wants to give himself the best chance. It’s a shame not to see him in the draw. He’s always such a staple.”

source: sports.inquirer.net

Murray and Nadal to meet in Madrid Open semifinals

MADRID — Andy Murray and Rafael Nadal will meet again in the semifinals of the Madrid Open on Saturday, a rematch of last year’s final won by the British player.

The winner will face either Novak Djokovic or Kei Nishikori, who also won on Friday.

The second-ranked Murray defeated Tomas Berdych 6-3, 6-2 to make it to the semis for the second consecutive Masters tournament on clay, while Nadal had to fight hard to get past Joao Sousa of Portugal 6-0, 4-6, 6-3.

Top-ranked Djokovic beat Milos Raonic 6-3, 6-4 to reach his fifth semifinal of the year, and sixth-ranked Kei Nishikori edged Nick Kyrgios 6-7 (6), 7-6 (1), 6-3 in a thriller that lasted 2 1/2 hours. Coming off a final loss to Nadal in Barcelona, Nishikori overcame 18 aces by Kyrgios, getting his lone break to go up 3-1 in the decisive set.

Djokovic got past the 10th-ranked Raonic to win his 31st match of the year in a rematch of the final in Indian Wells, where Djokovic also won. The Serb has won 13 straight matches against top-10 players, winning 29 of 30 sets during that run.

“It was a long match,” Djokovic said. “It could have gone a different direction if I had lost the serve on that last game. But you know, that’s what happens when you play somebody like Milos, one of the best servers in the game. It’s very difficult to play against him, you are constantly under pressure.”

Dominika Cibulkova of Slovakia, celebrating her 27th birthday, reached the women’s final by beating American qualifier Louisa Chirico 6-1, 6-1 in less than an hour. She will play Simona Halep, who defeated Samantha Stosur 6-2, 6-0 in the other semifinal. Halep, the 2014 finalist in Madrid, was the only seeded player to make it to the semis.

Murray had to play under a closed roof at the “Magic Box” center court because of rain.

“They were different conditions, playing under the roof, and I’ve adjusted to them well,” said Murray, who never faced a break point. “That was the most pleasant thing for me, because I’ve only played maybe three or four indoor clay matches in my life. Not easy conditions, against a tough opponent, and I played well.”

The roof was open when Nadal started, but it had to be closed in the second set. The interval didn’t help the Spaniard, who cruised in the first set but saw the 35th-ranked Portuguese rally back in the second.

Seeking his third title of the season, as many as he won in 2015, Nadal picked up the pace again in the final set to close out the match in just over two hours.

Real Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo was among those watching Nadal play.

Nadal has won four of the last five matches against Murray.

“This year is completely different to the previous years,” Nadal said. “I have different feelings. Murray played really well today and has been during the whole week. It’s going to be a very tough match. I have to give my best if I want to have options. I cannot think of last year. Of course I hope that I don’t repeat what happened last year.”

Murray defeated Nadal in straight sets in Madrid in 2015 to win his first Masters title on clay, but Murray lost to Nadal in the Monte Carlo semifinals last month.

“He’s definitely playing better, for sure, but I also think that I’m playing better than I was at this time last year,” Murray said. “You have to keep improving. There are things in my game that are much better than at this stage last year. I need to learn from the match that I played against him and hopefully have a good performance tomorrow.”

Murray, who has won six of his last seven matches on clay, needs to win the title this weekend to avoid being overtaken by Roger Federer in the rankings.

source: sports.inquirer.net