AGENCIES
BARCELONA
Rafael Nadal struggled to finish off Fabio Fognini at the Barcelona Open on Friday but eventually quelled one of his most troublesome opponents 6-2, 7-6(1) to reach the semi-finals.
The Spaniard, bidding for a ninth title at the claycourt tournament having reclaimed his Monte Carlo crown last week, cruised through the first set against the Italian but he went off the boil in the second. Fognini, who beat Nadal in the tournament last year and knocked him out of the US Open, hit back with two breaks after trailing 0-2 in the second set and served to send the match into a decider.
Showman Fognini saved three match points from 0-40 at 5-6, one with an outrageous drop shot, before succumbing in the tiebreak. Left-hander Nadal, eyeing a 10th French Open title next month, will face Philipp Kohlschreiber in the semi-finals.
In the other half, defending champion Kei Nishikori eased into his third consecutive Barcelona Open final with a 6-3, 6-2 win over French sixth seed Benoit Paire. The Japanese world number six has yet to drop a set in the Catalan capital this week and could face a mouthwatering clash with Nadal in Sunday's final if the 14-time Grand Slam champion can overcome Kohlschreiber in Saturday's other semi-final.
"I love Barcelona, I'm very comfortable playing this tournament. It's been great this three years and I hope I can play a very good match tomorrow," Nishikori told Spanish TV station Teledeporte. "I'll try to watch a little bit (of the other semi-final) maybe not the whole thing, but I hope to take something from today's match and prepare for tomorrow."
Paire had beaten Nishikori in their two most recent meetings in Nishikori's homeland in Tokyo and in a five-set thriller at the US Open last year. However, Nishikori rarely looked troubled after breaking to lead 3-2 before a second break sealed the first set 6-3.
Both players struggled on serve early in the second, but three breaks in the first four games put Nishikori 3-1 in front and he went on to seal his 14th straight win in Barcelona in just over an hour on court.
