Murray through to Aussie Open semis - and Nadal limps out

ANDY MURRAY moved into the semi-finals of the Australian Open today - and set up a meeting with David Ferrer after Rafa Nadal limped out.

The British No 1, who was the last man to beat Nadal at a grand slam event after seeing him off in the quarter-finals in Melbourne last year, looked a touch vulnerable when he dropped his first set of the tournament but found another gear when it mattered to come through 7-5 6-3 6-7 (3/7) 6-3 in three hours and six minutes against unseeded Ukranian Alexandr Dolgopolov.

Nadal's bid to land the "Rafa Slam" ended in frustration as injury contributed to his exit from the Australian Open for the second successive year.

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Nadal injured his left hamstring early in his last-eight clash with David Ferrer and his Spanish compatriot took full advantage to go through 6-4 6-2 6-3 and secure a semi-final spot against Andy Murray.

The world No 1 had to pull out of his quarter-final against Murray 12 months ago to the day with a knee problem when two sets down before going on to win at the French Open, Wimbledon and US Open.

He arrived in Melbourne aiming to become the first man since Rod Laver in 1969 to hold all four major titles simultaneously.

Murray will have to up his level considerably if he is to prevail against the Ferrer after a display against Dolgopolov which was inconsistent at best.

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"It was very tough," Murray said afterwards. "Every point against him is different, he hits the ball differently to everyone else, it's tough to explain.

"I struggled with my rhythm early on and he came back in the third set but I thought I did well enough."

Dolgopolov, the world No 46 who beat Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Robin Soderling in his previous two matches, had numerous opportunities to take a grip on the match but too often let Murray off the hook with moments of carelessness, a trait he will have to eradicate is he is to make the most of his undoubted potential.

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