MONTE CARLO (Reuters) -- World number one Roger Federer sped into the Monte Carlo Masters Series semifinals when he thrashed Spaniard David Ferrer to clinch his 500th professional victory on Friday.
The Swiss, who has never dropped a set against the claycourt specialist in their six encounters, won 6-4 6-0 and will meet 2003 French Open champion Juan Carlos Ferrero for a place in Sunday's final.
The Spaniard ended Frenchman Richard Gasquet's run in the principality with a 5-7 7-5 6-2 victory.
Gasquet started brightly but ran out of gas by the end of the second set as Ferrero outplayed him with powerful groundstrokes from the baseline.
He clinched victory in two hours 26 minutes on his first match point.
Federer wasted no time in defeating Ferrer. Following two exchanges of breaks, Federer stepped up a gear and broke decisively in the ninth game when Ferrer sent a forehand wide.
The second set was a mere formality for the Swiss, who wrapped up the win in 58 minutes. "I just felt like it was easy to keep the ball in play. It was easy to play aggressive. And usually that always happens against the best players. David is a very good player from my point of view," Federer told reporters.
"He's an excellent grinder and baseline player and he plays very well so it's hard to beat him. But I always find a way against him to overpower him from the baseline and just have enough variety to maybe frustrate him a bit.
"When I needed good shots they came along and today was a really good match so I'm really pleased."
Czech Tomas Berdych came back from the brink of elimination to advance with a 5-7 6-3 6-0 victory over Swede Robin Soederling.
Tenth seed Berdych will play either German qualifier Philipp Kohlschreiber or holder Rafael Nadal for a place in Sunday's final.
Nadal is hoping to extend his record winning streak on clay to 65 matches.
Following an exchange of breaks, Soederling took his opponent's serve in the 12th game to clinch the opening set when Berdych sent a forehand wide.
The Swede opened a 3-0 gap in the second set before Berdych suddenly woke up and won 12 games in a row.
"I started badly today but then things changed. I'm really happy to be in a position to prepare for tomorrow's semi-final," Berdych told reporters.
Copyright 2007 Reuters. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Swiss, who has never dropped a set against the claycourt specialist in their six encounters, won 6-4 6-0 and will meet 2003 French Open champion Juan Carlos Ferrero for a place in Sunday's final.
The Spaniard ended Frenchman Richard Gasquet's run in the principality with a 5-7 7-5 6-2 victory.
Gasquet started brightly but ran out of gas by the end of the second set as Ferrero outplayed him with powerful groundstrokes from the baseline.
He clinched victory in two hours 26 minutes on his first match point.
Federer wasted no time in defeating Ferrer. Following two exchanges of breaks, Federer stepped up a gear and broke decisively in the ninth game when Ferrer sent a forehand wide.
The second set was a mere formality for the Swiss, who wrapped up the win in 58 minutes. "I just felt like it was easy to keep the ball in play. It was easy to play aggressive. And usually that always happens against the best players. David is a very good player from my point of view," Federer told reporters.
"He's an excellent grinder and baseline player and he plays very well so it's hard to beat him. But I always find a way against him to overpower him from the baseline and just have enough variety to maybe frustrate him a bit.
"When I needed good shots they came along and today was a really good match so I'm really pleased."
Czech Tomas Berdych came back from the brink of elimination to advance with a 5-7 6-3 6-0 victory over Swede Robin Soederling.
Tenth seed Berdych will play either German qualifier Philipp Kohlschreiber or holder Rafael Nadal for a place in Sunday's final.
Nadal is hoping to extend his record winning streak on clay to 65 matches.
Following an exchange of breaks, Soederling took his opponent's serve in the 12th game to clinch the opening set when Berdych sent a forehand wide.
The Swede opened a 3-0 gap in the second set before Berdych suddenly woke up and won 12 games in a row.
"I started badly today but then things changed. I'm really happy to be in a position to prepare for tomorrow's semi-final," Berdych told reporters.
Copyright 2007 Reuters. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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