Intro:

Rafael Nadal secures a semi-final clash against Novak Djokovic after battling past David Ferrer in Monte Carlo.

Script:

Rafael Nadal set-up a semi-final showdown against Novak Djokovic after battling past David Ferrer at the Monte Carlo Masters.

Mallorcan Nadal powered his way into a one-set lead.

But the Valencia native reeled off two successive breaks to level the match.

Nadal responded with a break at the start of the third set and didn't look back:

SOUNDBITE (English), Rafael Nadal, world number five:

"A victory like this helps me in terms of confidence, in terms of physical, in terms of mentality, the way I played in the third (set) after losing a disappointing second... a great first set in terms of tennis, in terms of physical performance, in terms of mentality, that I was doing that very often last years..."

In wealthy Monaco, Nadal will hope to cash in against Djokovic in Saturday's last four clash.