MELBOURNE: Appearing uncomfortable for much of the match, defending champion Novak Djokovic held on to beat David Ferrer 6-4, 7-6 (4), 6-1 and complete a blockbuster semifinal lineup at the Australian Open.
He leads the top four men in tennis into the semis at Melbourne Park— Djokovic against No. 4 Andy Murray, who won his quarterfinal match earlier Wednesday 6-3, 6-3, 6-1 over Kei Nishikori of Japan.
On Thursday, No. 2 Rafael Nadal plays No. 3 Roger Federer, the first time the two former top-ranked stars have met in a semifinal since the 2005 French Open.
It marks only the third time that the top four seeds have advanced to the semis at the Australian Open—previously it was in 1988 and 2005. It was also the 14th time at all Grand Slams since the Open Era began in 1968, but it has happened in three of the last four—after the U.S. Open and French Open last year. Djokovic rubbed the back of his upper left leg on several occasions, looked on the verge of being physically sick in the second set and buried his head in towels several times during breaks. Late in the third set, a tired-looking Djokovic sat down on a linesman’s chair during a line-call video challenge by Ferrer.
An hour after the match, Djokovic further played down the possibility of any injuries, saying: “I don’t have any physical issues.”
On the women’s side, former and reigning Wimbledon winners Maria Sharapova and Petra Kvitova—two of the three players who can take the No. 1 ranking— advanced to the semifinals.
Sharapova won 6-2, 6-3 on Wednesday against fellow Russian Ekaterina Makarova, who knocked out five-time champion Serena Williams in the previous round. Kvitova reached the semifinals at Melbourne Park for the first time with a 6-4, 6-4 win over unseeded Italian Sara Errani.
The other player who can reach No. 1—third-seeded Victoria Azarenka— plays defending champion Kim Clijsters in the other semifinal Thursday.
Sharapova must repeat her 2008 Australian title run if she is to take over the No. 1 spot from Caroline Wozniacki, who lost any chance of maintaining her top ranking when she lost in the quarterfinals to Clijsters. Kvitova only has to match or better Azarenka to take the top spot.
Sharapova has dropped one set and lost 21 games in five matches.
Sharapova held the No. 1 ranking for seven weeks each in 2005 and 2007 and three weeks in mid-2008.
“I’ve been fortunate enough to be in that position before,” Sharapova said. (Agencies)