World No 1 finds his range on the nightshift

Stung by dropping the first set to an unseeded opponent, Rafael Nadal swept imperiously through the next three to beat Mardy Fish in the early hours of the morning yesterday to reach the semi-finals of the US Open for the first time.

Forced to wait until 11.30pm New York time for his match to begin, and surprised by the spirited start by the American in front of his home crowd, Nadal dominated thereafter to win 3-6, 6-1, 6-4, 6-2, and set up a date with Andy Murray.

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"This is one of the things that we players discuss all the time. There should be a limit on when to start. But we know that the TV rules in this," Nadal said. "I think I'm going to end up sleeping at 5am. I've got to go eat. With all the attention on the match, it takes a while to unwind. There's nothing else you can do."

Fish took the opening set on the strength of a 23-6 edge in winners and one service break. Fish won the first three games en route to a 5-2 advantage.

After Nadal held, Fish was dominant on his serve and clinched the first set with a sizzling forehand winner. "Mardy played unbelievable in the first set," Nadal said.

But the powerful Spaniard found his range and did not face a break point the rest of the match. Having shared the opening two sets the match was in the balance but the momentum swung Nadal's way when he broke Fish in the seventh game of the third. He served it out and continued to hold the edge with a break in the third game of the fourth. Fish displayed his frustration at the next change of ends, smashing his racket on the floor. The American's annoyance quickly turned to disappointment as he dropped his serve again to fall 5-2 behind.

There was no way back as the Spaniard secured the match at the second attempt when Fish hammered a forehand beyond the baseline. "I am very happy to be in the US Open semi-finals for the first time," Nadal said. "This court has always been very hard for me."

Nadal has been the best player on tour this year and last month he overtook Roger Federer as the world No 1, ending Federer's four-and-a-half-year reign at the top of the rankings.

The five-time Grand Slam champion earned that honour just a day after claiming gold at the Beijing Olympics, which marked his ATP-leading eighth title of the year. Nadal, who also beat Federer to claim his maiden Wimbledon title in July, is now in line to become the first player since Rod Laver in 1969 to win at the French Open, the All England Club and Flushing Meadows in the same year.