The Hindu : Sport / Tennis : Nadal, Ljubicic in last four

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Thursday, Jun 08, 2006

Sport

Sport - Tennis

Nadal, Ljubicic in last four

PARIS: Rafael Nadal moved on to the semifinals at Roland Garros when Novak Djokovic decided to stop. The defending champion extended his record clay-court winning streak on Wednesday by beating Djokovic, who retired with a back injury three points into the third set trailing 6-4, 6-4.

In the other quarterfinal, Ivan Ljubicic, seeded fourth, made the first Grand Slam semifinal of his career, beating the unseeded Julien Benneteau 6-2, 6-2, 6-3.

``It's not nice to win like that,'' Nadal said. ``I'm sorry for him. But this is good for me to head to the semifinals.''

Seeded second, the Spaniard won his 58th consecutive clay-court match and improved to 12-0 at Roland Garros. A potential Sunday showdown looms against top-ranked Roger Federer.

The unseeded Djokovic, playing in his first Grand Slam quarterfinal, hurt his back and sought treatment from a trainer after falling behind 3-0 in the second set. In the next game he took a spill behind the baseline and rose hobbling.

Djokovic won four more games but sometimes clutched his back and winced following shots. After hitting a backhand long in the first game of the third set, he walked to the net and conceded, frustrated by the missed opportunity against Nadal.

`Nadal beatable'

``I'm really unhappy that I finished this way,'' the 19-year-old Djokovic said. ``For sure he's the best on this surface, but he's not unbeatable. I realized that. He was not feeling too comfortable in control of the match.''

Nadal disagreed.

``I lost my concentration a little bit in the second set with his problems,'' Nadal said. ``I didn't really understand what was going on. But before that, I was playing good, with confidence, and improving in my game.''

The brevity of the 1-hour, 54-minute victory meant a welcome respite for Nadal, who had played 8 hours, 10 minutes in his previous two matches.

``It was relatively short, and I'm pleased,'' he said. ``I'm sure that for Friday I'll be in good shape.''

The women's semifinals will be on Thursday. Two-time champion Justine Henin-Hardenne plays two-time runner-up Kim Clijsters in an all-Belgian matchup, and 17-year-old Nicole Vaidisova faces former U.S. Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova.

The centre-court stands were barely half-full for the start of play on a sunny, mild day, and late arrivals missed Djokovic's best moment. It came in the second game, when he hit a forehand winner to end a 24-shot rally and break for 1-all.

Nadal promptly broke back and was in control from there with his patented mix of power and finesse.

Sporting gesture

When the Spaniard ripped a forehand passing shot up the line for a winner from eight feet behind the baseline, Djokovic joined in the applause. When Nadal hit two deft drop shots to break in the opening game of the second set, a frustrated Djokovic spiked the ball into the stands.

Even with Djokovic hurting, Nadal showed little mercy. When Nadal stroked a shot erroneously called out, Djokovic checked the mark and graciously signalled the ball good, prompting a replay of the point. Nadal then hit an ace.

Nadal said he was surprised when Djokovic retired.

``I just couldn't hold on anymore,'' Djokovic said. ``It wouldn't bring me good, that's for sure, if I would continue playing with the pain in the back.''

For Djokovic, Roland Garros ended with a retirement for the second successive year. He quit in the second round last year with breathing problems and cramping. — AP

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