Nadal Rallies To Reach QFs

© Getty ImagesRafael Nadal is through to the US Open quarter-finals for a fifth time.

Under sunny skies at the US Open Thursday, defending champion Rafael Nadal rallied from a break down in the first set to complete a 7-6(1), 6-1, 6-2 victory over Luxembourg’s Gilles Muller on Arthur Ashe Stadium.

Muller had established a 3-0 lead against the World No. 2 Wednesday before rain suspended play for a second straight day, but Nadal quickly recovered the break of serve when they resumed the fourth-round match Thursday and edged Muller in the first set tie-break.

After a 28-minute second set that saw Nadal lose just two points on serve, Muller offered brief resistance as he won the opening two games of the third. The Spaniard hit back strong, taking the final six games to move through to the quarter-finals for the fifth time.

Asked about his mindset when resuming the match at 0-3 in the first set, Nadal said: “It's best of five. Playing against Muller, he has fantastic serve, so I know I can go on court and lose the first set. That's the normal thing. But I go on court, try my best every moment and try to produce any opportunity to have the break back. I did."

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Nadal is now unbeaten in 11 straight matches at the US Open, where he completed his career Grand Slam last year. He improves to a 25-6 match record on hard courts this season.

The 28-year-old Muller, a former US Open junior champion, had reached the quarter-finals on his last visit to Flushing Meadows three years ago (l. to Federer).

Nadal will next face 2003 champion Andy Roddick, who rallied from a break down in the fourth set to beat fifth seed David Ferrer 6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 in a match moved to Court 13 after water seeped through the court surface in Louis Armstrong stadium behind the baseline. Roddick, who avenged a recent Davis Cup loss to Ferrer, high-fived fans crowded into the outside court after his win.

Noting that he played his first US Open juniors match on Court 13 (a loss to Scott Lipsky), Roddick told Tennis Channel during an on-court interview: “The atmosphere out here was so cool. It felt like an intimate little rock show".

Watch Roddick Interview | Watch Ferrer Interview

The former World No. 1 said that his intent was to avoid long baseline exchanges with Ferrer, a former US Open semi-finalist. “The shorter the points the better for me. I served and volleyed a lot, came in a lot. You don’t play the same way all the time. You play a certain game plan against a certain person. I executed very well."

Looking ahead to Friday’s clash with Nadal (against whom he trails 3-6 in career meetings), Roddick said: “It will be tough. Playing Nadal isn’t as physical as playing Ferrer, style of points-wise. It’s the quarters of the Open. We’ve got a weekend to play. We’ll roll the dice and see what happens.”

Roddick has now reached the US Open quarter-finals eight times. In addition to his 2003 title, which remains his lone Grand Slam crown, the American reached the final in 2006, falling to Roger Federer.

Looking ahead to the clash with Roddick, Nadal was full of admiration for the American. "Andy is a fantastic player," said Nadal. "He's having one of the best careers, being among the top players for, I don't know, 11 years, 10 years, nine years. That's a lot. That's amazing. So I have big respect for Andy, especially he's very tough to be there for a long time and he did. Quarter-finals, the matches must be very tough, and that's what's going to happen. It's going to be a very difficult match against Andy."

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