French wildcard Arnaud Clement ousted top-seeded Rafael Nadal out of the Open 13 semi-finals on Saturday to reach his second career final in Marseille. The 28-year-old Frenchman battled past a shaky Nadal, who was returning from a three-month lay-off forced by injury, and came back from a set behind to eliminate the world number two, 2-6, 6-3, 7-5. Nadal, who powered through the first set claiming two service breaks, suffered a bizarre incident early in the second set as the 19-year-old Spaniard got stung by a bee. The incident seemed to act in Clement's favor, who took advantage of Nadal's inconsistent performance and clinched the following two sets as he held his nerves on the important points. But the French Open champion, who didn't play a tournament since he won the Madrid Masters last October, said he feels he made a good comeback despite the defeat. "I had my chances of course but he (Clement) played the big points better and that's tennis. It came down to one or two points," Nadal was quoted as saying by the ATP official website. "Right now it's hard to feel positive but when I look back on this week eventually, I think it's been a good week. I've won three tough matches indoors after being out for three months and I'm playing at a good level already." Meanwhile, Clement, who reached the final in 1999 where he lost to compatriot Fabrice Santoro, admitted he was thrilled by his stunning victory. "It's an amazing feeling. It's the best I've played in a long, long time. I really felt comfortable out there on the court and I had a game plan which I stuck to very well throughout the match," said the world number 65. Clement next takes on sixth-seeded Croat, Mario Ancic, who defeated France's Sebastien Grosjean 6-3, 3-6, 6-3. 21st-ranked Ancic, who reached the semifinals in Marseille last year, is 1-2 against Clement, but the 21-year-old Croat won their last meeting in the first round in Adelaide last January.
