Nadal in last eight; Djokovic into semis

China Daily, May 31, 2011

Five-time champion Rafael Nadal reached the French Open quarterfinals on Monday with a 7-5, 6-3, 6-3 win over Croatia's Ivan Ljubicic.

It was another low-key display by the top-seeded Spaniard against the veteran Ljubicic before he took his Paris record to 42 wins and just one loss.

Nadal, bidding for a sixth French Open title to take him level with Bjorn Borg's record, has looked a shadow of his usual powerful self in Paris, shaken by the super-charged form of Novak Djokovic.

The second seeded Serb snatched his Madrid and Rome Masters claycourt titles in the run-up to Paris, and the pressure appears to be telling.

The great Spaniard dropped 42 games in the first three rounds, the most he has ever surrendered in his French Open career, and needed five sets to see off America's John Isner in the first round.

Second seed Djokovic was handed a place in the French Open semifinals on Monday when scheduled last-eight opponent Fabio Fognini was forced out with a torn left thigh muscle.

The 24-year-old Italian, who had been due to play his first career Grand Slam quarterfinal, suffered the injury in his marathon five-set fourth-round win over Albert Montanes on Sunday.

Djokovic will have to wait to discover his semifinal opponent.