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Soderling defeats Djokovic at ATP Finals in London

LONDON — Robin Soderling advanced to the semifinals of the ATP World Tour Finals by defeating Novak Djokovic 7-6 (5), 6-1 Wednesday for his second straight win at the season-ending tournament.

The Swede outlasted Djokovic in a tense opening set despite wasting three straight set points with the third-ranked Serb serving at 5-4. Djokovic put up little resistance in the second and was broken three straight times, netting a forehand on Soderling’s second match point.

“I won two matches in straight sets against the world No. 2 and No. 3. I couldn’t have asked for anything more,” Soderling said. “But there’s still at least two more matches to go.”

Soderling entered the tournament as an alternate after Andy Roddick pulled out with a knee injury. He also beat second-ranked Rafael Nadal in straight sets Monday in a rematch of their French Open encounter. He is the first player to reach the semifinals at the tournament for the top eight players in the world.

The loss ended Djokovic’s 11-match winning streak, his first defeat against Soderling in six meetings.

“I think he’s the best player so far in the tournament,” Djokovic said. “He was serving really well. All credit to him.”

Djokovic, who won back-to-back titles in Basel, Switzerland, and Paris before the tournament, defeated Nikolay Davydenko in his first group match. He can still advance to the semifinals, but likely will need to beat Nadal in his last round-robin match.

Nadal was to play Davydenko later Wednesday.

Soderling started with an ace on the first point and let his strong serve carry him throughout the match. He was never broken and finished with 10 aces.

Djokovic had his only two break point opportunities when leading 15-40 at 1-1 in the first set, but Soderling recovered with three straight service winners followed by an ace.

The Swede led 0-40 at 5-4 but missed a number of shots to keep Djokovic in the set. In the tiebreaker, Soderling took a 6-4 lead with a forehand volley and converted his fifth set point with a service winner.

He won the last six games of the second as Djokovic grew increasingly frustrated and error prone.

“My serve saved me in the first set, in my first three or four service games,” Soderling said. “In the second set I felt I was the better player, and then I could relax a bit.”