Ferrer reaches last eight after a seven-hour on-off epic

David Ferrer reached his fourth Grand Slam quarter-final of 2012 yesterday when he beat Richard Gasquet 7-5, 7-6, 6-4 in a rain-hit US Open last-16 tie which took over seven hours to complete.

Ferrer, the top-ranked Spaniard in New York, saw off 13th-seeded Frenchman Gasquet in two hours and 54 minutes of playing time.

But two lengthy rain delays meant the tie, which started shortly after 1.15 p.m. local time, did not finish until just before 8.30 p.m.

Fourth seed Ferrer will face Janko Tipsarevic, who beat Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-3, 7-6, 6-2 yesterday, for a place in the semi-finals.

“The rain made it difficult. But the fans were great and I wanted to win it for them,” Ferrer said.

The 30-year-old Ferrer took a 7-1 career lead over Gasquet into the last-16 tie, having also triumphed at the same stage at the Australian Open this year.

He made that 8-1 on a fifth match point on a damp and humid Louis Armstrong Stadium.

Ferrer is currently enjoying one of his best years on tour with his five titles second only to the six won this year by Roger Federer.

Djokovic into quarter-finals
• Defending champion Novak Djokovic reached the US Open quarter-finals last night when Swiss 18th seed Stanislas Wawrinka retired from their fourth-round match.

Djokovic was 6-4, 6-1, 3-1 ahead when Wawrinka called it quits and he will next face either 2009 champion Juan Martin Del Potro or 2003 winner Andy Roddick for a place in the semi-finals.