Nadal loses to defending champion Ferrer in Paris semi-final

Defending champion David Ferrer has upset compatriot and world number one Rafael Nadal 6-3, 7-5 to set up a final showdown with Novak Djokovic in the Paris Masters.

According to Sport24, Ferrer, 31, who won his only Masters title last year in the French capital, dominated his fellow Spaniard to set up the championship decider against Djokovic who came back to win 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 against the 2011 Paris champion Roger Federer.

No player has successfully defended the Paris title after previous winners Boris Becker, Guy Forget, Pete Sampras and David Nalbandian all failed after reaching a second straight final, the report said.

Nadal hit an uncharacteristic 25 unforced errors and converted just one break point in seven attempts as Ferrer defeated his rival for only the fifth time in 21 meetings, the report added.

The world number four received plenty of support from the Paris crowd and carved out the decisive break to go 6-5 in the second set before serving out for the match, the report further said.

Ferrer said that it was definitely the best match he has played all week and was fighting for every ball.

Nadal was sportsmanlike in defeat against the player he beat to win an eighth French Open earlier this year and said that Ferrer had played much better than him.