World No. 1 Rafael Nadal beat Russian third seed Nikolay Davydenko 6-3, 6-2 in the semi-finals of the Barcelona Open on Saturday to stay on course for a fifth successive title at the Catalan event.
In a repeat of last year’s final, the Spanish top seed will play compatriot David Ferrer after the fourth seed came back from a set down to defeat fifth-seeded Chilean Fernando Gonzalez 2-6, 6-2, 7-6.
World No. 8 Davydenko had three break points early in the match, but failed to capitalize and Nadal found his range on the clay in breezy conditions to break twice and take the opening set.
PHOTO: REUTERS
After losing his serve again in the second set, Davydenko failed to convert chances to break back and Nadal sealed victory on the Russian’s serve on his first match point with a thumping backhand drive that caught the line.
“It wasn’t a great performance, but I didn’t make too many errors,” the 22-year-old Mallorcan said at a news conference.
Nadal has only lost four times on clay since 2005, most recently to fellow Spaniard Juan Carlos Ferrero in the second round of last year’s Rome Masters.
PHOTO: EPA
Ferrer looked well out of sorts in the opening set against the big-hitting Gonzalez, but rediscovered his form to take the second with two breaks of the Chilean’s serve.
He was broken when serving for the match at 5-3 in the final set, but recovered to win the tie-break 7-5, clinching victory when Gonzalez netted a forehand.
■FED CUP
AFP, PARIS
Mighty Russia’s hopes of a third successive Fed Cup title, and a fifth in six years, suffered a potentially fatal blow on Saturday when they trailed Italy 2-0 after the opening day of their semi-final.
Flavia Pennetta fired the first shot with a 67-minute, 6-4, 6-0 win over Anna Chakvetadze, a late replacement for Vera Zvonareva who pulled out on Friday because of an ankle injury.
Then world No. 44 Francesca Schiavone stunned world No. 9 Svetlana Kuznetsova 1-6, 6-2, 6-3 in a 2 hour, 23 minute thriller on the clay courts at Castellaneta Marina in Italy’s south.
“I didn’t play my best tennis. I came here from playing on hard courts so it was very confusing,” Kuznetsova said. “The conditions were slow in the first set, got faster in the second and slowed down again in the third. It’s very disappointing to be 2-0 down, but we are not out of it yet.”
Despite dropping the first set, Schiavone sped to a 4-1 lead in the second on her way to leveling the rubber for the 2006 champions.
Schiavone was broken in the first game of the final set, but hit back in a second that lasted 14 minutes.
That proved the ideal foundation for the 28-year-old to secure a memorable win and give Italy the chance of wrapping up the semi-final, and a third final in four years, when Pennetta faces Kuznetsova and Schiavone meets Chakvetadze.
Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci are teamed to play the doubles against Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and Nadia Petrova.
“This is for the team,” Schiavone said. “She didn’t play so good, but I put her under pressure and she couldn’t do her best.”
Russia, who beat Italy in the 2007 final in Moscow, are now in danger of losing just their second Fed Cup tie in the last five years.
In the second semi-final in Brno, Czech Republic, the US, champions on a record 17 occasions, came back from 1-0 down to finish level at 1-1 after the first day.
Fed Cup rookie Alexa Glatch, the world No. 114, starred for the US, who are without the Williams sisters, with a 6-1, 6-2 win over experienced Iveta Benesova, the world No. 29.
Petra Kvitova had given the Czechs the lead, beating Bethanie Mattek-Sands, also making her debut, 6-3, 7-6 (7/2).
“Glatch played a great match and gave Iveta practically no chance,” Czech captain Petr Pala said.
The Czechs are contesting their first semi-final since 1997 and are looking to reach the final for the first time since 1988. The US are in the last four for the fifth successive year, but have not made the final since 2003.
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