Nadal beats Wawrinka to reach semifinal in Rome
Published:Friday | April 30, 2010 | 5:54 PM
Rafael Nadal overcame a slow start to beat Stanislas Wawrinka 6-4, 6-1 in the quarterfinals of the Rome Masters today.
Aiming for his fifth title at the Foro Italico in six years, Nadal had trouble finding his range off Wawrinka\'s powerful serve but finally managed to break the 26th-ranked Swiss player to close out the first set, then cruised from there.
Nadal will next play Ernests Gulbis of Latvia, who prevented an all-Spanish quartet in the semifinals by beating Feliciano Lopez 7-6, 6-1.
Earlier, Fernando Verdasco extended his impressive form on clay with a grueling 7-6, 3-6, 6-4 win over Novak Djokovic.
In the semifinals, Verdasco will face David Ferrer, who cruised past Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 6-4, 6-1.
Roger Federer and Swiss Davis Cup teammate Yves Allegro were eliminated from the doubles tournament by American pair John Isner and Sam Querrey 6-4, 6-4.
Federer lost his opener in singles to Gulbis on Tuesday.