Indian Wells, CA – World No. 1 superstar Novak Djokovic was an easy quarterfinal winner Friday at the $4.33 million BNP Paribas Open, but third-seeded Andy Murray lost in three sets to Juan Martin del Potro.
Djokovic blew past lethargic eighth-seeded Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 6-3, 6-1 on the hardcourts at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden. The super Serb fired eight aces and lost only five points on serve in the brisk 54-minute affair.
The 25-year-old Djokovic is now 10-5 lifetime against Tsonga, including a win in the 2008 Australian Open final, and the Serb has won their last eight encounters overall.
The six-time Grand Slam titlist Djokovic is now a perfect 17-0 this year, including a third straight and fourth overall title at the Aussie Open, and he's won his last 22 matches overall dating back to October of last season.
Djokovic titled here in 2008 and 2011 and was the Indian Wells runner-up in 2007.
The U.S. Open champion Murray, who was an Indian Wells finalist in 2009, lost for just the second time in seven all-time meetings against del Potro. The Argentine, seeded seventh, came through with a 6-7 (5-7), 6-3, 6-1 win against the 25-year-old Scotsman.
Saturday's other semifinal will pit fifth-seeded former world No. 1 Rafael Nadal against sixth-seeded Tomas Berdych. Nadal owns a commanding 12-3 advantage over Berdych, including a victory in the 2010 Wimbledon final and wins in their last 11 meetings.
Nadal was the Indian Wells champ in 2007 and 2009.
The 2013 Indian Wells winner will collect $1 million.
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