By James Waterson Photo Credit: Matthew Stockman/Getty Images
(August 19, 2011) In what was one of the best performances of his career, Mardy Fish dispatched Rafael Nadal 6-3, 6-4 to advance to the semifinals of the Western & Southern Open on Friday.
Fish had never beaten Nadal in any of their six previous encounters, including their match in this year’s Wimbledon quarterfinal.
The top-ranked American saved two break points in his first service game, averting a repeat of their match at Wimbledon.
He then played well to earn a break point in Nadal’s service game at 1-1, and he got the break when the Spaniard double faulted. Both players held routinely until 5-3, when Nadal had a break point. Fish responded by hitting an ace, and he went on to serve out the set.
Fish had another break point at 1-1, but Nadal held him off. The American earned the crucial break at 2-2, and held easily until 4-3. Fish played two loose points to fall behind 15-30, but he responded by hitting two aces.
Serving at 5-4, Fish took a 40-love lead off of a few shaky points from Nadal.
"I played a couple nervous points, but I was pretty happy with the way I executed," Fish said. "That first point or two in the last game was huge. I got a little lucky. I hit the top of the tape and maybe the side of the line on a defensive forehand crosscourt and maybe caught him off guard and he missed his slice out wide. A little bit of luck and a little bit of belief as well."
Fish’s serve helped him out today. He hit 12 aces and he won 73 percent of his service points. He also saved four break point opportunities, making him the only player left in Cincinnati who hasn’t been broken yet.
The American also made Nadal work in his service games, as he won 41 percent of his returning points.
"(I've been) taking advantage of the opportunities, making a lot first serves in key moments, not giving away many free points," he said. "Look, those three guys (Davydenko, Gasquet and Nadal) return extremely well, so if I don't lose serve, I am usually pretty successful."
He will face World No. 4 Andy Murray in the next round. Earlier in the day, Murray beat 10th-seeded Gilles Simon of France 6-3, 6-3.
It was a match-up that favors Murray, as he’s won seven of their previous eight matches.
His record against Fish isn’t as good, though. The American has won four of their last seven matches, and he has a three match winning streak against the Scot.