Rafael Nadal reaches 7th straight final at Madrid Open; Williams to face Sharapova in final

MADRID – Rafael Nadal reached his seventh consecutive final since returning from a knee injury by brushing aside wild-card entry Pablo Andujar 6-0, 6-4 at the Madrid Open Saturday.

Nadal had little trouble extending his winning streak in clay-court semifinals to 46 matches, polishing off his overmatched countryman after winning the first six games on the outdoor red clay.

Nadal will now have a shot at his fifth title since coming back from seven-month layoff healing his left knee.

“I couldn’t have asked for a better run of results,” said Nadal, a two-time champion in the Spanish capital. “Five months ago I wouldn’t have dreamed of this return. I want to thank all those who supported me through that time.”

The Spaniard will play the winner between Tomas Berdych and Stanislas Wawrinka.

Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova will play for both the No. 1 ranking and the women’s title after each won her semifinal in straight sets.

Nadal dominated the outclassed Andujar at the start.

The clay-court expert’s surgical groundstrokes were usually enough to force Andujar to make errors — and if not, Nadal knew when to go for a winner or approach the net to finish off the point.

The worst moment for the 113th-ranked Andujar came when he ceded his third straight service game with a double fault.

But in the second set Andujar shook off his jitters and had three break points for a 4-2 lead, only for Nadal to dig out of the hole and hold his serve.

“I played a very, very good first set, playing aggressively,” Nadal said. “Pablo played more aggressively in the second set and had a chance at a break, but luckily it got away from him.”

Andujar continued to prove feisty, but Nadal hit a winner to set up a break point for 5-4 that he converted when Andujar’s drop shot fell short.

The top-ranked Williams will have a chance to win her 50th career title after beating Sara Errani of Italy 7-5, 6-2, while No. 2 Sharapova recorded her 500th career win at all levels after seeing off Ana Ivanovic 6-4, 6-3.

Both Williams, the defending champion, and Sharapova arrive to their final in good form and with numbers to back up their bid for a title.

Sharapova has won all 10 sets she has played at the tournament, while Williams boasts a 12-2 record against the Russian.

“Of course it’s always tough against her,” Sharapova said about Williams. “I haven’t had a win against her in a long time. But the great thing is that I’m setting myself up in a position where I can try to change that around.”

After a skittish start, Williams rolled by Errani and broke her final service game in both sets.

“I feel I played solid,” Williams said. “In the second set more than in the first, I made a few less errors, which is something I needed to do.”

Williams said Sharapova would pose a different challenge from her previous opponents this week.

“I feel this whole tournament I have only played clay-court opponents,” said Williams. “All have been smaller than me. Tomorrow will be a different game, more power.”

Williams struggled with her shot-making early against Errani, uncharacteristically misfiring on three smashes in the first set, which she still managed to pull out after falling behind 3-1.

The 15-time Grand Slam winner then started clicking with her serve and held two games to love, but she needed four set points before finally breaking Errani with a forehand winner placed just inside the line to grab the lead.

Ahead a set, Williams pressed her advantage and eased through the second.

On Sunday, Williams will play her first final on red clay since 2002. Last year’s trophy at the Caja Magica came on the experimental blue clay surface that was removed following players’ complaints it was too slippery.

After Sharapova took the first set, Ivanovic opened up a 2-0 lead in the second. But Sharapova responded and stole her serve twice, sealing the second break with a lob over the top of her Serb rival.

The 26-year-old Sharapova said she was proud to have notched her 500th win.

“That number is pretty significant so I’m pretty proud of that,” she said. “(And) no, (it) doesn’t make me feel like a veteran.”