HUGE BOOST: Czech tennis player Tomas Berdych celebrates after winning against Serbian Novak Djokovic in a quarter-final match of the Italian Open tennis tournament at the Foro Italico in Rome, Italy. (EPA)
DPA/Rome
Tomas Berdych rallied from the brink of defeat with Novak Djokovic serving for victory, turning the tables in a 2-6, 7-5, 6-4 upset of the top seed at the Rome Masters yesterday.
Defending champion Rafael Nadal remained on course for final after coming through a tough quarter-final against fellow Spaniard David Ferrer.
Nadal prevailed 6-4, 4-6, 6-2 in a 2hr 46min thriller in which Ferrer’s challenge only petered out in the deciding set.
Nadal will now meet Tomas Berdych in today’s semi-final.
It is Nadal’s second win over Ferrer inside a fortnight after his quarter-final victory over him on his way to the Madrid Masters title last week.
Djokovic confessed to an unexplained meltdown as he led a set and 5-3 against the Czech whom he had beaten on 13 of previous 14 occasions.
But Berdych, the sixth seed who had last beaten the Serb in a 2010 Wimbledon semi-final, found his form just in time to break Djokovic for 4-5 and begin a run which would eventually take him to victory in just under two and a half hours.
“Ï was a different player,” said Djokovic, twice a Rome champion. “I lost concentration, the match turned around. He gained confidence and there you go.”
Berdych won five consecutive games and 16 of 21 points to secure the second set, then broke for 2-1 in the third. Seven games later, the desperate Djokovic saved three match points but could not touch a ninth ace from Berdych which sealed the upset.
“I didn’t use my opportunities when they were presented,” Djokovic said. “I was two points from the match but I lost this one by myself.
“Tomas knows how to play well, he’s been just behind the top four player for several years. He’s able to play the big matches. He’s a dangerous player on any surface with a serve like that. I should not have allowed these kinds of ups and downs, especially now with the French Open approaching.
“But I still have time to prepare for Paris. I’m disappointed, I wanted to do well here and this is not the result I wanted.”
The loss in the quarter-finals was the earliest in Rome for Djokovic since 2007, while Berdych ended an 11-match loss streak against the Serb.
Frenchman Benoit Paire crushed Marcel Granollers, the Spaniard who beat injured Andy Murray in the previous round, 6-1, 6-0 in just 57 minutes.
Sharapova withdraws from Rome, Williams keeps on winning
Rome: Holder Maria Sharapova withdrew from the Rome Masters before her quarter-final with Italy’s Sara Errani yesterday as Serena Williams secured the longest winning streak of her career.
Sharapova, winner of the last two editions at the Foro Italico, said she had been feeling poorly since reach the Madrid final last week against Williams.
“I was already a bit off in Madrid and played through it and it came back last night and I got sick again. It’s not smart to compete for two or three more rounds with Paris starting next week.
“I’ve got a lot on my schedule. The tournaments all mean a lot for me but obviously with the French Open coming up it is important to make smart decisions.”
The Russian world number two was to have played Italian seventh seed Sara Errani in a re-match of their 2012 French Open final, which Sharapova won. Errani becomes the first Italian in the home semi-finals in nearly three decades with the walkover win. The withdrawal came around 15 hours after Sharapova had comfortably beaten Sloane Stephens to reach the last eight at the Foro Italico.
Sharapova is due to defend her Roland Garros title in Paris from next Sunday. She won the clay title in Stuttgart a month ago and reached last weekend’s Madrid final against Williams.
Williams won her 22nd straight match as the top seed crushed Carla Suarez Navarro 6-2, 6-0 in 55 minutes, firing seven aces and breaking the Spaniard’s serve five times.
The American will wait for a semi-final opponent as two-time champion Jelena Jankovic plays Simona Halep.
Williams won the Rome title 11 years ago and has since appeared in four semi-finals.