April 04, 2008	Friday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 26, 1429

MIAMI (Florida), April 3: World No 2 Rafael Nadal rallied for a three-set victory Wednesday over James Blake to book his semi-final berth at the ATP and WTA Sony Ericsson Open.

Nadal, seeded second behind world No 1 Roger Federer, defeated Blake 3-6, 6-3, 6-1 as he moved a step closer to his first title of 2008.

It was the Spaniard’s second victory over Blake in as many starts, following his quarter-final win over the American at Indian Wells.

Prior to that, Blake had won the first three career meetings between the two.

Nadal earned the break he needed in the third game of the of the third set, and held on to close out the match in 1hr 55min.

Nadal said the key to his changing fortune against Blake was a more aggressive, albeit riskier, stance.

“I think just before I was running a lot, two meters behind the line,” he said. “I think right now I’m playing a little bit more aggressive. I can lose, but I think it’s the only way to try to win.”

In the semi-finals, Nadal will face Czech 10th seed Tomas Berdych, who eliminated Russian Igor Andreev 6-4, 6-4 in the day’s other men’s quarter-final.

In women’s action fourth-seeded Serbian Jelena Jankovic reached the semi-finals when Russia’s Elena Dementieva retired while trailing in the second-set of their quarter-final clash.

Jankovic led 6-1, 3-1 when Dementieva, battling a back injury for which she received treatment after the first set, decided she couldn’t continue because of pain in her lower back.

“I think I played pretty good tennis, especially in the first set,” Jankovic said. “I was really dictating the points. It was my game overall that was out there on the court, and I was really happy with that. Unfortunately she stopped the match in the middle of the second set and there’s nothing I could do.”

Jankovic, who had saved five match points in her battling second-round victory over Sweden’s Sofia Arvidsson, booked a semi-final match against Vera Zvonareva, who beat Russian compatriot Dinara Safina 7-5, 6-4.

Jankovic’s abbreviated quarter-final echoed her experience at Indian Wells, where she reached the semi-finals when American Lindsay Davenport retired from their contest with a back injury.

The Serbian will make her fourth semi-final appearance of the year but is still seeking to make her first final of 2008, having lost in the final four at the Australian Open, Dubai and Indian Wells.

On Tuesday, third-seeded Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova and American Serena Williams, the eighth seed and defending champion, advanced to the semi-finals.

Williams easily defeated world No 1 Justine Henin of Belgium, while Kuznetsova downed Venus Williams in straight sets.

Wednesday’s results (prefix number denotes seeding):

Men’s singles:

Quarter-finals: 10-Tomas Berdych (Czech Republic) bt 31-Igor Andreev (Russia) 6-4, 6-4; 2-Rafael Nadal (Spain) bt 9-James Blake (US) 3-6, 6-3, 6-1.

Women’s singles:

Quarter-finals: 19-Vera Zvonareva (Russia) bt 13-Dinara Safina (Russia) 7-5, 6-4; 4-Jelena Jankovic (Serbia) bt 10-Elena Dementieva (Russia) 6-1, 3-1 – Dementieva retired.—Agencies