Djokovic closer to overhauling Murray; Nadal beats Safin

BEIJING - Novak Djokovic can return to the world number three ranking later this month if he reaches the final of the China Open tennis.

The Serb second seed put himself into a good position for a rise with a 6-3, 1-6, 6-1 quarter-final defeat of Spain’s Fernando Verdasco here Friday.

His Saturday opponent will be French Open finalist Robin Soderling after the Swede beat Ivan Ljubicic 7-6 (7-3), 6-3.

Also joining the final four was 2005 tournament winner Rafael Nadal, with the top seed defeating Marat Safin 6-3, 6-1 in 77 minutes.

Safin is just weeks away from retirement after a career which included a stand at number one and Grand Slam titles in New York, 2000 and Australia, 2005.

The 29-year-old will pack it all in for a new life away from tennis after Paris Bercy in early November.

Nadal has now won both of his meetings with the Russian.

Nadal, playing his first event since the US Open after an abdominal strain, will test himself against Croatian eighth seed Marin Cilic, who ended a six-match win streak for last week’s Kuala Lumpur champion Nikolay Davydenko as he defeated the Russian 6-4,

6-4.

The result was a repeat of Cilic’s win in China in 2007 over Davydenko.

Third-ranked Andy Murray has withdrawn from next week’s Shanghai Masters with a wrist injury, paving the way for Djokovic to make a move upwards.

The Scot will be unable to defend winner’s points from next week after claiming the Madrid title a year ago during this period. Should Djokovic move into the final through a Saturday victory, he will be third in the October 19 rankings.

“I was surprised Murray pulled out from Shanghai, but that’s how tennis is. It isn’t the end of the year; there are still three or four tournaments to go,” said Djokovic.

“I thought I was playing well and consistent this year, but I still dropped a spot,” said the Serb. “That meant others were playing really well - including Murray.”

Murray and number one Roger Federer will both be missing in Shanghai, though the Swiss is already assured of finishing the season at the top of the table after winning the French Open and Wimbledon.

Djokovic improved to 5-2 over Verdasco in their career series. The Serb broke four times in going through in an hour and three-quarters.

“It’s easy to be happy when you are winning but I had ups and downs in today’s match,” said Djokovic. “Verdasco used these chances in the second set when he broke and started stepping it up and he had control over the match.

“I had to save energy for the second set for a refreshing start to the third.”

In women’s play, 2006 champion Svetlana Kuznetsova, one of five Russians in the last eight, reached the semis as she ended the upset run of teenage compatriot Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-3, 6-3.

The number 39 Pavlyuchenkova had made her mark with a second straight knockout in Asia of Venus Williams, following up on Tokyo success the week previous.

Kuznetsova will play fellow Russian Nadia Petrova, who defeated Peng Shuai of China 6-7 (5-7), 6-3, 6-2 despite 27 unforced errors.

Poland’s Agnieszka Radwanska stunned Beijing 2008 Olympic gold medallist Elena Dementieva 7-5, 6-3.