Youzhny dispatches Nadal

Mikhail Youzhny sent Rafael Nadal crashing out of the Dubai Open beating the defending champion in straight sets 7-6 6-3.

Top seed Roger Federer also struggled but defeated seventh seeded Serb Novak Djokovic 6-3 6-7 6-3.

In the semi-finals, Federer will play fifth seeded German Tommy Haas, a 6-0 6-2 winner of Olivier Rochus of Belgium, while Youzhny will play unseeded Swede Robin Soderling, who beat Fabrice Santoro of France 6-1 6-7 6-0.

Youzhny's victory was not entirely unexpected - having won the Rotterdam title last week - while Nadal has not reached a final since Wimbledon, and has not claimed a title since he won Roland Garros in June. Youzhny also won their last meeting, in the quarter-finals of the 2006 US Open.

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