Nadal destroys Robredo to reach US Open semi-finals

PanARMENIAN.Net - Rafael Nadal destroyed fellow Spaniard Tommy Robredo for the loss of just four games as he powered into the US Open semi-finals in New York.

According to BBC Sport, the 2010 champion, seeded second, won 6-0 6-2 6-2 on Arthur Ashe Stadium against the man who had knocked out Roger Federer in the previous round.

Nadal, 27, goes on to face Richard Gasquet in the semi-finals after the Frenchman earlier beat David Ferrer in five sets.

"I think I played great the first set - it's my first set so far this year at 100%," said Nadal, who returned from a serious knee injury in February. "I did all the things that you expect to do good in the first set, in my opinion. I am very happy with the way that I moved myself on court, very happy with the way I hit my forehand and my backhand especially. So in general it was my best match of the tournament, so that's great news."

When the draw was made, the session had promised a first ever showdown between Nadal and Federer at Flushing Meadows.

That prospect ended with Robredo's terrific fourth-round win over the Swiss, but the 31-year-old was unable to muster any sort of challenge against the man currently dominating on hard courts.

The United States Open Tennis Championships is a hardcourt tennis tournament which is the modern iteration of one of the oldest tennis championships in the world, the U.S. National Championship, for which men's singles was first contested in 1881. Since 1987, the US Open has been chronologically the fourth and final tennis major comprising the Grand Slam each year; the other three are the Australian Open, French Open and Wimbledon. It is held annually in late August and early September over a two-week period. The main tournament consists of five event championships: men's and women's singles, men's and women's doubles, and mixed doubles, with additional tournaments for senior, junior, and wheelchair players.