Nadal fights back to set up Fognini revenge match
Nadal had not reached a hardcourt semi-final for more than a year, but he will now play Fognini.
BEIJING (AFP) - Rafael Nadal came from behind against hard-hitting Jack Sock on Friday to reach the China Open semi-finals and set up a rematch with his shock US Open conqueror Fabio Fognini.
The Spanish great, scrapping to recover his form after a tough year, was frequently outgunned by the American s howitzer forehand but he dug deep to see off the world number 30, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3.
"Yes, it was an important victory for me. Obviously I finished the match playing better than what I started. It s important because I came back," Nadal said.
"This year I lost a lot of matches when I had an advantage. So to have the chance to win a match when I start losing this one, so it s important for me, too.
"It s an important thing, important fact that I finished the match playing better than what I started. That is a positive thing for my game."
Nadal had not reached a hardcourt semi-final for more than a year, but he will now play Fognini, who stunned him last month in the US Open third round, for a place in the title match.
"He s a great player. When you play against a great player, especially if you don t play to your best, your chances are lower," Nadal said of the Italian, who beat Uruguay s Pablo Cuevas 6-1, 2-6, 6-2.
"If I am able to play my best tomorrow... I am going to have my chances. If not, it s going to be tough. It s simple. Sport is simple."
On a cold, bright day, Nadal paid for a slow start when he was broken in the first game. Sock s big forehand kept Nadal under pressure throughout the set, which he ultimately yielded with a double-fault.
But the 14-time Grand Slam-winner hit back by breaking first-up in the second set, and he gave a fist-pump of relief and satisfaction when he eventually levelled the match 6-4.
They slugged it out to 3-3 in the third set until Sock blinked first, handing Nadal three break points, and for once the American s forehand misfired as he shanked a routine shot high into the stands.
And it was another miscued forehand which settled the quarter-final as Sock, serving to stay in it, hit one long to hand victory to Nadal on his first match point.
Meanwhile in the women s last eight, Agnieszka Radwanska beat Angelique Kerber 6-1, 6-4, and Timea Backsinszky bounced back from an opening-set bagel to beat Sara Errani 0-6, 6-3, 7-5.
In the other men s quarter-finals, unbeaten five-time champion Novak Djokovic is playing America s John Isner later, while Spanish fourth seed David Ferrer takes on Taiwanese wildcard Lu Yen-hsun.
