Tennis : Nadal beats Pella in straight sets to reach Monte Carlo semi-finals

Rafael Nadal survived an early scare in the first set of his Monte-Carlo Masters quarter-final against Guido Pella, but held firm to beat the Argentine 7-6 (7-1), 6-3. Pella broke three times by the fifth game of the first set, which saw Nadal one-point away from a 5-1 deficit.But the 11-time Monte-Carlo champion dug deep and forced a tie-break, which he took 7-1. The 32-year-old Spaniard then proceeded to take the second set and wrapped up the match in two hours and 22 minutes to come within a victory from his 13th Monte-Carlo championship match.