Indian Wells: Rafa Nadal stayed on track for a successful title defence at the Indian Wells ATP tournament with a 6-4, 7-6 victory over Czech Tomas Berdych in the quarter-finals.
The Spanish left-hander came from 3-1 down in the second-set tiebreak, winning the last three points of the match at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden to book a place in the last four against big-serving Ivan Ljubicic.
Croat Ljubicic, who turns 31 on Friday, earned himself an early birthday present by powering past Argentina's Juan Monaco 4-6, 6-2, 6-1 earlier in the day to reach the semi-finals.
Left-hander Nadal, twice champion at Indian Wells, broke Berdych twice to take the opening set in just over an hour in blustery conditions on the showpiece stadium court.
After the players traded service breaks in the seventh and eighth games of the second, the set went into a tiebreak which Nadal clinched when the Czech netted a backhand.
"It was a very important victory for me," the Spanish world number three said at courtside. "The conditions are always very nice here and it's amazing me for this feeling."
Former world number three Ljubicic unleashed 11 aces and 39 winners to wrap up victory in one hour, 47 minutes against Monaco on a hot afternoon in the California desert.
Bureau Report
First Published: Friday, March 19, 2010, 11:15