Monte Carlo  - Rafael Nadal saved energy, earning two wins in a total of three hours to blast into his fifth straight semi-final at the Monte Carlo Masters on Friday as the tournament got caught up after Thursday rain.

The top seed in the chase for five trophies on the trot at the European clay-season opener, by beating Nicolas Lapentti 6-3, 6-0 then notched his 25th win in a row at the venue 6-3, 6-3 in a quarter-final over Croatian Ivan Ljubicic.

"I played less than three hours, that's always important. I just went to the court and tried to play my best. The first match was not long and I was totally hundred percent in the second.

Monte Carlo - Rafael Nadal was due to continue his clay campaign Friday with an afternoon quarter-final against Ivan Ljubicic after finishing off a rain-interrupted contest over Nicolas Lapentti at the Monte Carlo Masters.

Officials at the season clay kick-off were riding a lucky streak of perfect weather before more rain was forecast for the weekend.

Nadal completed a 6-3, 6-0 third-round crushing of the Ecuadorian after getting through only one game on Thursday.

Monte Carlo  - Roger Federer and Davis Cup team-mate Stan Wawrinka advanced into a Swiss showdown at the Monte Carlo Masters on Wednesday as Rafael Nadal made a winning start to another clay-court marathon season.

Newly-married second seed Federer had to fight through as Italian Andreas Seppi saved three match points before exiting 6-4, 6-4 to the 13-time Grand Slam champion.

Hamburg - Rafael Nadal remained comfortably top of an unchanged men's tennis rankings issued on Monday by the ATP. Spain's Nadal leads with 14,470 points, far ahead of former number one Roger Federer of Switzerland (11,020), Serbia's Novak Djokovic (9,010) and Scotland's Andy Murray.

London, Apr. 10 : Spaniard Rafael Nadal has declared that he will defend the Aegon title at London's Queen's Club and head for a rankings war with Andy Murray.

Murray has also entered the tournament from June 8-14, to set up what could be one of the summer's most thrilling tennis rivalries, reports The Sun.

Last year Nadal, the world No1, used Queen's to prepare for his Wimbledon win.

Miami  - Rafael Nadal eagerly hopped the first available flight back to Europe on Friday after what the Spaniard admits was a brutal, tiring month of March in the US.

The world number 1 lifted a title at Indian Wells over Andy Murray but followed up at Crandon Park with a quarter-final shock at the Miami Masters.

The clay master from Mallorca was hoping to clear his head and rest his body over the weekend before plunging into training next week on his home island prior to the start of the Monte Carlo Masters starting next Easter Sunday.