Nadal beats Roddick, Djokovic sees off Murray

INDIAN WELLS, California, Mar 18 (Reuters) Rafael Nadal beat Andy Roddick 6-4 6-3 and Novak Djokovic overwhelmed Andy Murray 6-2 6-3 to reach the Pacific Life Open final here.

The 20-year-old Nadal will play Serb Djokovic in his first final since losing to world number one Roger Federer at Wimbledon last year.

Djokovic, seeded 12th, beat fellow 19-year-old Murray, the 13th-seeded Briton who was clearly struggling with the ankle injury he sustained in his quarter-final against Tommy Haas.

Spaniard Nadal was near perfect in his semi-final against Roddick, ripping 33 winners and committing only 12 unforced errors.

''I played a very complete match,'' the second seed told reporters. ''It's the best match of my season.

''I was saying before the tournament I was in my best moment of the season and the best moment from the last six months.

He's one of the best players in the world so that's a very good win for me.'' American Roddick made little headway despite cracking 16 aces.

''He's tough,'' said the third seed. ''It's no secret he moves well and when he's playing aggressively and clicking...you know it's why he's become the player he's become.

''He picked a couple of balls off his shoes running in for the forehand and crushed them up the line. When he hits passes like that it makes it real difficult.'' NOSE-DIVED Nadal's form nose-dived after last year's Wimbledon final, reaching only two semis before this week's event.

''When I have watched him in the last six months, he has been playing a little bit more defensive,'' Roddick said.

''Today he came out and played super-aggressive, got great depth. I never felt comfortable.'' Djokovic's win over Murray guaranteed him a place in the top 10 when the new world rankings are released tomorrow but the Briton said it may have been a mistake to play the match.

''I didn't know how I was going to feel really till I got on court,'' said Murray, who also bruised his hip and knee when he fell during the match against Haas. ''And I made a bit of an unprofessional decision to have gone on.

''I guess the older you get, the more you learn that it's not always about just going. I wanted to go out and try and play and maybe see if I could move okay.

''Then after the first couple of games, I kind of realised, that when you can't change direction, and when the movement, which is generally the best part of your game, is missing, it's quite hard to play. I was a little bit scared to move.'' Murray will reach a career-high number 12 when the rankings are released and hopes to be in better shape when he plays in Miami next week.

''I want to get ready for that and give 110 percent there,'' he said. ''I hope that I'm going to be okay to play, but I'm 90 percent sure I should be fine.'' Djokovic will be the first Serbian man to reach the top 10.

''It means a lot in our country because we've never had a big tennis tradition,'' Djokovic said.

REUTERS SAM BST1013