Spaniards Nadal and Ferrer advance Sunday at U.S Open

NEW YORK, Sep 2 - No. 2 Rafael Nadal eliminated unseeded Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France, 7-6, 6-2, 6-1 to clear the draw of all 15 Frenchmen who began the week.

Nadal's fellow countryman David Ferrer - the No. 15 seed - needed five sets and nearly four hours to dispose of 24th-seeded David Nalbandian of Argentina. By virtue of the 6-3, 3-6, 4-6, 7-6 (7-5), 7-5 victory, Ferrer will make his first appearance in the U.S. Open Round of 16 against Nadal.

"I don't want to think about Nadal now because I'm tired. If I think about him I'll be more tired," Ferrer joked after the exhausting win.

With his back to the wall against Nalbandian, Ferrer managed to force a deciding final set by enduring the fourth set's remarkably long and pivotal eighth game. Ferrer eventually converted his sixth break-point opportunity after the game went to deuce on nine occasions.

Ferrer should not count on an easier time in his upcoming fourth-round match, considering Nadal's tremendous talent and quick-healing left knee.

After receiving treatment for tendinitis during his first-round affair, the 21-year-old Nadal showed little sign of discomfort in Sunday's triumph over the 22-year-old who beat Nadal in the Under-16 European Championships some years ago.

Nadal took anti-inflammatories Sunday morning after experiencing some pain Saturday. The pain continued into the early stages of Sunday's match, but the tournament's second seed said it subsided by the first-set tiebreak as the knee became warmer.

"When I was in the tiebreak, I didn't think about the pain. I was just thinking about the match," said Nadal. "I'm very happy today about my knee."

Nadal knows what to expect from his next opponent, having faced Ferrer numerous times in the past.

"[Ferrer's] always a tough match because he's a very, very fast player," Nadal said. "He's also playing with good rhythm."

Nalbandian, who has struggled of late, once again failed to advance to the fourth round here. His last appearance in the Round of 16 came in 2003 when he faced eventual champion Andy Roddick in the semifinals.

Despite Nalbandian's defeat, Argentines still have something to cheer about thanks to No. 20 Juan Ignacio Chela. The 28-year old native of Argentina advanced to outlasting No. 12 Ivan Ljubicic, 6-4, 6-7, 2-6, 6-3, 6-3, in a match that took 3 hours and 44 minutes to unfold.

The win was Chela's first over the Croat in seven attempts. Ljubicic's disappointment was compounded by his failure to reach his first-ever Round of 16 here after nine appearances.

Before Chela enhanced it further, the day was already destined to have a heavy Argentine flavor to it with a record five men from the South American country playing third-round matches.

Unseeded Argentine Juan Martin Del Potro faces No. 3 Novak Djokovic of Serbia in the nightcap at Arthur Ashe Stadium.

The winner moves onto face No. 23 Juan Monaco.

In an all-Argentine matchup, Monaco became the second of his countrymen to advance to the fourth round with a 7-6 (5), 6-2, 6-4 victory No. 23 Agustin Calleri.

Monaco was much more precise than his counterpart, committing 33 fewer errors during the match.

Two more Spaniards have the opportunity to join Nadal and Ferrer. No. 17 Carlos Moya takes on German Philipp Kohlschreiber in a late matinee on the Grandstand court with eighth-seeded Tommy Robredo following against Ernests Gulbis of Latvia.