Both Djokovic and Nadal Into Beijing Semis
Novak Djokovic was a 6-1, 6-2 quarterfinal winner over Sam Querrey at the 2013 China Open in Beijing on Friday, 6-1, 6-2, to land a spot in the semifinals and hold on to his number one spot atop the ATP Men’s Singles Rankings. Djokovic must win the Beijing title for the fourth time if he is to have the chance to stay at number one in the world, but it will be out of his hands if Rafael Nadal reaches the finals in Beijing. Last year at the BNP Paribas Masters in Paris, it was Querrey with the upset win over Djokovic. With the win, Djokovic extends his streak in Beijing to 17-0, bidding to win the title for the fourth time, following victories in 2009, 2010 and 2012.
Djokovic will meet Richard Gasquet in the semis, after Gasquet’s win over David Ferrer, 6-3, 6-4. Gasquet ended a streak of five consecutive losses to Ferrer when he beat him in five sets in the U.S. Open quarterfinals last month and again got the better of the Spaniard, as he broke serve three times for victory in just under 90 minutes.
Djokovic holds a lifetime record of 8-1 over Gasquet, their last meeting was a Djokovic victory in August in Montreal.
"He was always one of the most talented players in our generation," said Djokovic of his semifinals opponent. "I think in the last two years, he’s been playing the tennis of his life. In terms of consistency, he’s up there. We’re expecting a tough match for both of us. There is no question about it. I need to be aggressive. I know what I need to do against him. Hopefully it’s going to work."
Gasquet is coming off semifinal appearances at both the U.S. Open, where he fell to Nadal, and the Thailand Open in Bangkok, where he fell to Milos to Raonic, and has a 44-16 match record on the season.
Also in Beijing, Nadal, who is one win away from returning to number one in the world, staged a dramatic comeback win on Friday, one point away from trailing Fabio Fognini 2-6, 1-5, but fought back to beat the Italian 2-6, 6-4, 6-1 to reach the semifinals. In the semis, Nadal will meet Tomas Berdych, a 7-5, 6-2 winner Friday over American John Isner in 90 minutes. Nadal holds a commanding 15-3 edge in head-to-head matches with Berdych. Berdych came from behind in both sets to beat Isner in their fifth career meeting. He trailed 3-5 in the first set before reeling off four consecutive games to take the opener. He then rallied from an early break down in the second set, breaking serve three times.
"I am going to have a very tough opponent in front of me. In the end, it’s another match. True, it’s a little bit more special for the circumstances, but nothing else," said Nadal. "It’s the semifinal match of a big tournament, I am going to try to be competitive and try to play my best tennis. If not, I am going to have no chance to be through. It is not the moment to think about number one … it is the moment to think about Berdych."
