Russia’s Nikolay Davydenko laughed off his chances of beating clay-court king Rafael Nadal in the Barcelona Open semi-finals.
Davydenko, who also made the last four in 2005, has the unenviable task of ending the world No. 1’s 23-match victory run on clay.
“Say the odds are 100 percent for Rafa,” the Russian joked when pressed to predict how he would fare against the Spaniard who has won the last four editions of the tournament at the Real club in Barcelona.
PHOTO: REUTERS
“You never know about tomorrow [Saturday], but I’m not going to worry about it now. I’m going to relax and enjoy my life,” Davydenko said.
The third seed put in the hard work on the dirt as he wore down Czech Radek Stepanek 6-7 (4/7), 6-2, 6-2 in two and a quarter hours on Friday to make the semi-finals.
By contrast, top seed Nadal enjoyed just a light hit after earning a quarter-final walkover when David Nalbandian announced on Thursday that he would not play because of a hip injury that will require a scan.
PHOTO: AP
Davydenko is easing back into action after an extensive lay-off because of a heel injury.
This week is only his second back on a regular schedule and his progress has been impressive after a Monte Carlo quarter-final last week.
“I’m very happy with my results,” the Russian said.
“I’m playing some good tennis now. But playing Rafa will give me a good idea of where my game is now,” he said.
Nadal leads Davydenko 3-2, winning both of their meetings on clay. But the Russian came up victorious in their last match in the quarter-finals of Paris Bercy last autumn when the Spaniard quit with knee pain trailing 6-1.
Chilean ninth seed Fernando Gonzalez prevented a top-four seed sweep in the semis with his two-hour-plus upset of second seed Fernando Verdasco, with the Spaniard going down fighting 6-3, 4-6, 6-4.
The big-hitting Gonzalez will play against last year’s finalist David Ferrer after the fourth seed defeated fellow Spaniard Tommy Robredo, a former champion, 6-3, 6-4 in just under 90 minutes.
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