Nadal wins after Roddick bows out

Nadal's explosive strokeplay proved too hot for Tursunov

World number one Rafael Nadal coasted through to the semi-finals of the Japan Open in Tokyo but second seed Andy Roddick was beaten by Gael Monfils.

Top seed Nadal wasted no time beating Dmitry Tursunov 6-4 6-1, to make it two wins out of two against the Russian.

But Roddick lost 7-6 (7-5) 4-6 7-6 (8-6) to Monfils despite saving three match points in the second set.

Fifth seed Monfils will play Radek Stepanek, who went through after Jarkko Nieminen pulled out with a fever.

Monfils took the first of the tie-breaks against Roddick after a delightful array of lobs, drop shots and volleys, concluding the set with a fierce backhand past the American at the net.

Roddick broke for 5-4 in the second set with an emphatic smash and the former world number one, now ranked 10th, levelled the match with a powerful forehand down the line.

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In the deciding set Roddick was 0-40 down when serving to stay in the match at 4-5, but stayed afloat courtesy of three booming serves.

Once again Monfils had the upper hand in the tie-break, however, and managed to reach a drop shot and then find a gap to pass Roddick and secure victory in a shade under three hours.

"I tried to control the points," Monfils said. "I tried to be aggressive, tried to push him, come to the net a bit more."

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