**Rafael Nadal eased into the last four of the Madrid Open with a comfortable 6-1 6-3 win over Gael Monfils.**The world number three, who will return to two if he reaches the final, breezed through the first set with breaks of serve in the fourth and sixth games.
Monfils put up more resistance in an erratic second set but his wayward display was summed up by a double fault which sealed Nadal’s victory.
The Spaniard will face compatriot Nicolas Almagro in the semi-finals.
The unseeded 24-year-old was on scintillating form in a 6-3 6-1 win over Austrian Juergen Melzer, converting four out of seven break points and not facing a single one on his own serve as he reached his first Masters Series semi.
In the women’s competition, fourth seed Venus Williams booked her place in the semi-finals with a 6-3 6-3 win over Australia’s Samantha Stosur.
Williams’ next opponent will be Israel’s Shahar Peer, after she beat 13th seed Li Na 6-4 3-6 6-4 in their quarter-final.
The last quarter-final match is between Jelena Jankovic and Aravan Rezai, they will compete for the right to take on Lucie Safarova.
Unseeded Czech player Safarova reached the last eight by recording her first career win over 16th-seed Nadia Petrova, 6-1 1-6 6-4, in their quarter-final.This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
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