World number two Rafael Nadal advanced to the semifinals of the Marseille Open after defeating France's Paul-Henri Mathieu 7-5, 6-4 on Friday. The 19-year-old Spaniard, who is playing his first tournament of the year, successfully stepped up his game on the big points as he saved six out of six breakpoints en route to his two-hours, two-minutes victory. Nadal next takes on another Frenchman, Arnaud Clement, who overcame his compatriot Fabrice Santoro with an epic 7-5, 4-6, 7-6 (7-5) victory. Earlier on Friday, in an all-Croatian quarterfinal, Mario Ancic and Ivan Ljubicic fought for two hours and 16 minutes, firing over-200 km/hr serves before sixth-seeded Ancic finally prevailed and recorded his first victory over his Davis Cup teammate and doubles partner. The Croatian duo, who helped their team oust Austria in the Davis Cup last week, have also clashed in last year's semifinal in Marseille, where Ljubicic won in three sets. 21-year-old Ancic, ranked 21 in the world, will face eighth-seeded Sebastien Grosjean in the final-four, after the Frenchman saw off Russian teenager Evgeny Korolev in straight sets.
