体坛英语新闻：Nadal one win away from returning to world No. 1 spot

BEIJING, Oct. 4 (Xinhua) -- Spaniard Rafael Nadal is only one win away from returning to world No. 1 in the ATP rankings after pulling off a dramatic comeback victory over Italian Fabio Fognini in the quarterfinals of the China Open here on Friday.

Nadal was pushed to corners as he was trailing 2-6, 1-5, but he showed battling qualities again, clawing his way back to beat the Italian at 2-6, 6-4, 6-1 to reach semifinals.

If Nadal wins his semifinal against Tomas Berdych, he will return to world No. 1 for the first time since July 3, 2011. Should Nadal lose before the final, Novak Djokovic must still win his fourth China Open crown to stay at the top for a 102nd week.

"It's something that doesn't create more pressure for me," said Nadal, who triumphed in Beijing on his 2005 debut. "It's something that already happened in the past. If that happens again, it will be good, it will be special for me, but we'll see."

"I am going to have a very tough opponent in front of me. In the end, it's another match. True, it's a little bit more special for the circumstances, but nothing else.

It's the semifinal match of a big tournament, I am going to try to be competitive and try to play my best tennis. It is not the moment to think about No. 1; it is the moment to think about Berdych."

The 27-year-old Nadal is looking to win his 11th title of the season. In 13 tournaments, he has only failed to reach the final once, losing in the first round at Wimbledon. His triumphs include Roland Garros, the US Open and five ATP World Tour Masters 1000 trophies.

Fourth seed Berdych had a much easier time of it as he overcame eighth seed John Isner of the United States 7-5, 6-2 in 90 minutes.

After watching the Spaniard's performance against Fabio Fognini, he believes he has a slight chance to beat Nadal for the first time since 2006.

"I had the experience already this year a couple of times," the Czech said of the clash against Nadal. "It's always a great match. The chance is there, but he's really on a run and playing well. But I saw a couple of games today and there might be a chance. I will look for it and try to do my best," said Berdych, who trails their Head2Head series at 3-15.

Elsewhere, Djokovic recorded a thumping 6-1, 6-2 quarterfinal win over American Sam Querrey and he will take on Frenchman Richard Gasquet, who beat Spaniard David Ferrer 6-3, 6-4.

Djokovic has a perfect 17-0 mark in Beijing and is bidding to win the title for the fourth time, following victories in 2009-10 and 2012.