Berdych bests Ferrer to reach Aussie semis
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Melbourne, Australia (SportsNetwork.com) - Tomas Berdych fended off a David Ferrer comeback on Tuesday and reached his first Australian Open semifinal as a result.
Berdych, seeded seventh, won the first two sets of the quarterfinal meeting in quick fashion, then suddenly lost the momentum when the third-seeded Ferrer rallied to win the third.
The hard-hitting Czech, having lost in the quarters of the Aussie Open the previous three years, made sure it wouldn't happen a fourth as he finished off a 6-1, 6-4, 2-6, 6-4 triumph at Rod Laver Arena.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The first set lasted just 30 minutes, and Berdych appeared poised to make it a quick one by taking a two sets to love lead.
Ferrer broke Berdych's serve twice in a third set that saw him nudge a line judge standing near a chair he wanted to put a towel on, a sign he was up for a fight.
The frustrated Spaniard, however, couldn't overcome Berdych's serve in the fourth, as Berdych fended off a break point in the final game and came away with the victory in three hours, three minutes.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Ferrer rallied from two sets down to beat Nicolas Almagro in last year's Aussie quarters before eventually losing in the semis to Novak Djokovic, who will play eighth-seeded Swiss Stanislas Wawrinka in Tuesday's other quarterfinal.
The former No. 1 Djokovic is a dominant 15-2 lifetime against Wawrinka, including a fourth-round win here a year ago. The Serbian star also topped the Swiss in a U.S. Open semifinal last season.
Djokovic, seeded second this year, has won his last 25 matches at the Aussie Open, where he's the three-time reigning champion and has captured four of the last six titles Down Under.