Paes-Stepanek in semis of Miami Masters

Miami: Leander Paes and Radek Stepanek fought their way to the semifinals of the ATP Miami Masters with a 7-6(6) 6-4 win over Spaniards David Marrero and Fernando Verdasco.

The seventh seed Indo-Czech pair needed one hour and 27 minutes to down the fighting Spaniards. The victory means that Paes and Stepanek are on course for a title clash with India`s Mahesh Bhupathi and Rohan Bopanna. Paes and Stepanek are up against formidable top seeded Americans Mike and Bob Bryan, whom they had defeated in the Australian Open title clash early this year. Sixth seeded Bhupathi and Bopanna will take on second seeded Max Mirnyi and Daniel Nestor. In the Paes-Stepanek match last night, saving two crucial breakpoints in the second set served their purpose. They converted one of the two chances to get that decisive break and secure their passage to the last-four stage. PTI