Roger FedererRoger Federer, who had not originally planned to play in the Italian Open, crushed Thomas Berdych 6-3 6-3 yesterday to reach the semi-finals.
An early loss to Nick Kyrgios in Madrid last week convinced the Swiss maestro that he needed more matches on clay before the French Open and he is taking full advantage of the opportunity.
The second seed will play the winner of last night’s match between Rafa Nadal and Stan Wawrinka in the last four.
Berdych took an early lead in the opening set only to double fault the break away in the sixth game.
A hard-fought win over Fabio Fognini seemed to take its toll on Berdych who grew more and more frustrated as the match progressed.
Federer handled the windy conditions better and was almost untouchable on first serve, winning 86 per cent of points.
“Thomas (Berdych) can play much better than this,” Federer told reporters.
“He struggled with the wind even though it picked up in the second set.”
The Italian Open is one of two Masters 1000 tournaments Federer has never won.
Earlier, David Ferrer outlasted David Goffin, the only unseeded player to reach the last eight, 6-2 4-6 6-3.
Ferrer, the seventh seed, was able to impose his furious rhythm at the start of the match, quickly jumping to a 3-0 lead before breaking the Belgian a second time to close out the set.
Goffin decided to try to take the ball earlier and this tactic paid off in the following set, only for Ferrer to regroup and dominate the end of the match.
Ferrer reached his fourth semi-final in Rome and today he plays Novak Djokovic who beat Kei Nishikori 6-3 3-6 6-1.
In the women’s event, Simona Halep crushed Romanian compatriot Alexandra Dulgheru 6-1 6-0 in 56 minutes to reach the Italian Open semis for the second time.
The no.2 seed next meets Carla Suarez Navarro who eliminated Petra Kvitova 6-2 6-2.
Maria Sharapova was at her best to beat Victoria Azarenka 6-3 6-2 and reach the semi-finals.