MADRID, Spain -- Defending champion Rafael Nadal gave his clay-court doldrums a boost by reaching the Madrid Open semifinals on Friday with a dominant performance against Thomas Berdych. In the womens tournament, two-time defending champion Serena Williams withdrew with a leg injury, while Maria Sharapova ousted Li Na in the quarterfinals. The top-ranked Nadal had lost his previous two quarterfinal matches on clay for his worst run on the surface in a decade. But buoyed on by a partisan crowd, Nadal overpowered Berdych 6-4, 6-2 to advance at the Magic Box. "I brought great energy and intensity to it and thats the best news, that its my best (on clay) yet," Nadal said. "The things that, historically, Ive done well on this surface I managed to do them again today." Nadal has been improving with every match in Madrid after losing at the quarterfinals stage in preceding tournaments in Monte Carlo and Barcelona. But he showed no sign of the nerves that had uncharacteristically crept into the game of the most successful clay-court player ever as he pushed Berdych to the corners and punished him with a powerful forehand that accounted for 16 of his winners. "My play is good when Im hitting my forehand well, especially on clay," said Nadal, who is vying for his third title in the Spanish capital. "In Monte Carlo I used my backhand more and not my forehand, and when I have to hit five or six backhands in a row it doesnt help my game." Berdych, who dropped to 3-18 against Nadal, couldnt keep up in the hot sun beating down on Manolo Santana centre court. Nadal faces countryman Roberto Bautista Agut after the 45th-ranked player beat Colombias Santiago Giraldo 6-3, 6-4. David Ferrer followed Bautista Aguts victory with a 7-6 (3), 6-3 win over Ernests Gulbis to become the third Spaniard in the semis. Kei Nishikori prevented an all-Spanish lineup in the final four by beating Feliciano Lopez 6-4, 6-4 in the late match. The win also ensures that he will become the first Japanese player to break into the top 10 when the new world rankings are released on Monday. Nishikori remained undefeated on clay this season in nine matches after winning the Barcelona Open title. The top-ranked Williams has had her left thigh heavily bandaged this week and said she injured it during a first-round victory over Belinda Bencic on Sunday. "It started to get better but, most importantly right now, I just need some time to rest and recover. Its beyond words. Its so frustrating," Williams said in a statement. "This is not the way I wanted this week to end." The withdrawal gave 2011 champion Petra Kvitova a walkover and a spot in the semifinals. The 32-year-old Williams said the injury would not keep her out of the French Open, with the defending champion tweeting she would play in Rome next week before the second Grand Slam of the season starts on May 25. Sharapova reached the semis after she rallied to beat Li 2-6, 7-6 (5), 6-3. Li was in control until she failed to convert two break points in the 11th game of the second set. Errors then began creeping into the Australian Open champions game as Sharapova evened the match. After an exchange of breaks in the third set, the ninth-ranked Russian broke again and then held serve to win on Lis 43rd unforced error. "It really could have gone her way today. You know, it was just a matter of a few points in the second set," said Sharapova, who came through despite seven doublefaults. "I was down, I didnt play a great first set, and I found a way to get myself in a position to be in the third." Sharapova faces third-ranked Agnieszka Radwanska in the semifinals after the Polish player beat French qualifier Caroline Garcia 6-4, 4-6, 6-4. Kvitova will face fourth-seeded Simona Halep after the Romanian ousted Ana Ivanovic of Serbia 6-2, 6-2. Air Max 90 Wholesale Cheap .com) - The Atlanta Hawks have stepped up to every challenge during their 14-game winning streak and will face another daunting task Friday with Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and the Oklahoma City Thunder in town. Air Max Outlet Uk . - Andrew McCutchen went 4 for 5 and finished a home run short of a cycle, and Jordy Mercer drove in a career-high four runs to lead the Pittsburgh Pirates to an 8-2 rout of the Philadelphia Phillies on Friday. http://www.fakeairmaxukoutlet.com/best-m...s-cheap-uk.html. It has been eleven years, eight months, and 261 days since I played my last CFL game. Air Max 95 Wholesale Uk . Nainggolan scored his first Italian league goal at Bologna, in October 2010, and he also opened his Roma account there following his January move from Cagliari. The Belgium midfielder volleyed home Miralem Pjanics cross from close range eight minutes from time. Air Max Shop Uk . - San Diego Padres centre fielder Cameron Maybin is going to be out two to three months after rupturing his left biceps tendon during a game against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Sunday.ALBANY, N.Y. - About one-third of professional mixed martial arts matches end in knockout or technical knockout, indicating a higher incidence of brain trauma than boxing or other martial arts, according to a new study in the American Journal of Sports Medicine. University of Toronto researchers examined records and videos from 844 Ultimate Fighting Championship bouts from 2006 to 2012 for the study published this month. They found that 108 matches or nearly 13 per cent ended in knockouts. Another 179 matches, or 21 per cent, ended in technical knockouts, usually after a combatant was hit in the head five to 10 times in the last 10 seconds before the fight was stopped. "Were taking the premise with this that what you see on TV is one thing, but to kind of add scientific rigour to document it objectively," said Michael Hutchison, co-author and director of the concussion program at the universitys MacIntosh Sports Medicine Clinic. With the technical knockouts, or TKOs, they reviewed videos and found "an increasing number of repetitive strikes to the head" during the last 30 seconds of a match, he said. Professional mixed martial arts includes elements of wrestling, judo, boxing and kickboxing inside an enclosure with fighters wearing small, fingerless gloves and no headgear. Officials from UFC, the sports major brand, seeking approval to stage bouts in New York have argued that mixed martial arts has evolved over 20 years with many safety regulations to protect fighters, including mandatory suspensions after concussions. They say its safer than boxing, where fighters tend to take repeated blows from padded gloves, with no history of deaths or traumatic brain injuries sustained in the ring. Lawrence Epstein, chief operating officer of UFC, called the Toronto study "somewhat flawed" and said a forthcoming study by researchers who have enrolled nearly 400 active and retired fighters will provide better insight. "By partnering with the Cleveland Clinic, one of the worlds leading medical research institutions, on advanced studies aimed at not only preventing long-term brain injuries, but also identifying those predisposed to them, the UFC demonstrates true commitment to the safety of all professional athletes," Epstein said. Preliminary results from the Cleveland studies found athletes with higher exposure to head trauma — based on a formula including number of fights, years fighting and fights per year — were likelier to score lower on cognitive testing. Researchers conducting the free, ongoing assessments of fighters brain health are examining factors like genetics, lifestyle or head trauma exposure and susceptibility to injury. The Toronto researchers, who examined UFC matches, found the time from a knockout blow — often a punch to the jaw — until maatches were stopped averaged 3.dddddddddddd5 seconds with losers on average getting hit 2.6 more times to the head. With TKOs, they found that in the last 30 seconds before a match was stopped the loser was hit on average 18.5 times, 92 per cent of those to the head. Hutchison acknowledged that unlike the knockouts, which meet the criteria for brain concussions, they cant definitively identify the particular injury from a TKO. Professional rules say that happens when a referee stops a fight because one competitor can no longer defend himself. "We can accurately suggest ... this cant be good for their health," he said. Citing data from other research, the study said the mixed martial arts head trauma rate also outpaces football and hockey. The researchers proposed introducing rules like in boxing where a fighter gets a 10-second count and evaluated after a knockdown. They also proposed more training to help referees to identify fighters who are defenceless or have lost consciousness so they can stop fights more quickly. "Given that participation at amateur levels of the sport is growing rapidly, we expect to see high rates of traumatic brain injuries at more junior levels of amateur competition," the researchers wrote. "These points strongly argue for banning the sport in youth and for preventive strategies to reduce the burden of traumatic brain injuries in professional MMA fighters who elect to fight." Hutchison wasnt saying whether mixed martial arts should be legal or not, only that adults should know the risks so they can make informed decisions. People are inherent risk takers, and some do it with drinking, smoking, skydiving or other activities, but they should be aware, he said. Most states have legalized and regulated professional mixed martial arts although some are silent on the matter. New York is the only state that prohibits such fights and longstanding efforts to get it legalized recently stalled again for advocates hoping to gain access to Madison Square Garden and other New York venues. The state Senate has passed the bill for several years and put it in a proposed budget for the upcoming fiscal year, but it has not cleared the state Assembly. New York state Sen. Joseph Griffo sponsored legislation that would legalize the sport and subject amateur mixed martial arts to state oversight that would include more stringent rules and regulations like those employed by amateur boxing. Regulation would also help the state go after the underground fights with paying audiences that are occurring now, especially in New York City, he said. "I think everybody would agree the objective is to be very sensitive and do everything possible with preventing trauma to the head," Griffo said. "I dont think in any way that should prevent the sport." ' ' '