Rafael Nadal cruises to China Open semis

World number one Rafael Nadal progressed through to the semi-finals of the China Open after dismantling sixth-seeded American John Isner in straight sets in the men's singles event here on 6 October.

The Spanish tennis maestro, who is bidding to win his second China Open title, knocked out Isner 6-4, 7-6(0) in a one-sided quarter-final clash.

Nadal first broke Isner's serve at 5-4 in the opening set, before he rebounded strongly to recover from 15/40 in the second game of the second set and eventually sweeping through the tie-break.

The top-seed will now lock horns with Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria to book his place in the summit showdown of the tournament. Nadal currently leads Dimitrov 8-1 in their ATP Head-to-Head series.

Meanwhile, Australian tennis player Nick Kyrgios will also aim to reach the semi-finals when he takes on Steve Darcis of Belgium in his quarter-final clash later today.

In the women's singles event, second-seed Simona Halep also made it to the semi-finals after clinching an easy 6-2, 6-1 win over Daria Kasatkina of Russia in their last-eight clash. 

-ANI