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| Federer & Nalbandian reach semis | Federer & Nalbandian reach semis |
| (40 minutes later) | |
| Roger Federer and David Nalbandian secured semi-final places at the Masters Cup with victories in their final Red Group matches in Shanghai. | Roger Federer and David Nalbandian secured semi-final places at the Masters Cup with victories in their final Red Group matches in Shanghai. |
| Defending champion Nalbandian knocked out Andy Roddick with a 6-2 7-6 (7-4) victory that also guaranteed world number one Federer's qualification. | Defending champion Nalbandian knocked out Andy Roddick with a 6-2 7-6 (7-4) victory that also guaranteed world number one Federer's qualification. |
| Federer returned the favour, beating Ivan Ljubicic 7-6 6-4 to give Nalbandian second place in the group. | Federer returned the favour, beating Ivan Ljubicic 7-6 6-4 to give Nalbandian second place in the group. |
| Rafael Nadal and Nikolay Davydenko face off for the final slot on Friday. | Rafael Nadal and Nikolay Davydenko face off for the final slot on Friday. |
| MASTERS CUP SEMI-FINALS Federer v Nadal/DavydenkoBlake v Nadal | |
| Nalbandian will face James Blake in the last four after the American qualified for the semi-finals by winning his opening two matches in the Gold Group. | |
| Knowing he had to win to have any chance of retaining his title, Nalbandian did an excellent job of defusing Roddick's big serve. | Knowing he had to win to have any chance of retaining his title, Nalbandian did an excellent job of defusing Roddick's big serve. |
| "In the beginning I played very good," said Nalbandian. "I was hitting good shots and got control of the match. | "In the beginning I played very good," said Nalbandian. "I was hitting good shots and got control of the match. |
| "He didn't serve so good, that's why I went away from him." | "He didn't serve so good, that's why I went away from him." |
| And Nalbandian said it was difficult to enjoy the win after learning that his nine-year-old cousin and godson Lautaro Nalbandian had died in an accident at home in Argentina. | |
| 606 DEBATE: Who will win the Masters Cup? | 606 DEBATE: Who will win the Masters Cup? |
| "It was terrible (but) I can do nothing from here," he said. "I try to push as hard as I can on the court." | |
| Roddick, ranked fifth in the world, was a shadow of the player who came close to upsetting Federer on Tuesday. | |
| "Give credit where credit's due - I didn't play badly, I hit the ball through the court, but he played very well," he said. | "Give credit where credit's due - I didn't play badly, I hit the ball through the court, but he played very well," he said. |
| Roddick joins Spain's Tommy Robredo in being eliminated from the tournament after defeat in the first two-set encounter in a tight group. | Roddick joins Spain's Tommy Robredo in being eliminated from the tournament after defeat in the first two-set encounter in a tight group. |
| Red Group: Roger Federer (Swi), Ivan Ljubicic (Cro), Andy Roddick (USA), David Nalbandian (Arg) | Red Group: Roger Federer (Swi), Ivan Ljubicic (Cro), Andy Roddick (USA), David Nalbandian (Arg) |
| Gold Group: Rafael Nadal (Spa), Nikolay Davydenko (Rus), Tommy Robredo (Spa), James Blake (USA) | Gold Group: Rafael Nadal (Spa), Nikolay Davydenko (Rus), Tommy Robredo (Spa), James Blake (USA) |