Nadal impresses in win over Wawrinka

Originally published on: 05/06/13 00:00

The seven-time French Open champion set up a semi-final clash with Novak Djokovic as he cruised past the No.9 seed 6-2 6-3 6-1. Nadal’s serve was broken just once during the one hour and 56 minute contest and he benefited from 40 unforced errors off the racket of his Swiss opponent, who came into the match off the back of a tiring five-set win over home-favourite Richard Gasquet.

“I'm happy the way that I played today,” said Nadal, who is bidding to become the first man to win eight titles at one Grand Slam. “It was my best match of the tournament without any doubt. I said I need to make a change. I was confident that I can do it and I did. 

“So now I am in semi-finals, three matches in a row without losing a set,” he added. “The last two matches, I only lost one [game on] serve. That's starting to be very positive numbers. Only numbers, but most important thing at the end is the feeling and the feeling is completely different. If I was not happy five days ago about my level, today I say I am happy that I am in semi-finals.

“To win against a player like Wawrinka is impossible with this score if you don't play at a very good level.”

The Mallorcan leads Djokovic 19-15 in their head-to-head match-ups but the Serb triumphed in the pair’s last outing in Monte Carlo.

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