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Tennis

Spain moved to within touching distance of the Davis Cup final after winning both singles rubbers against USA.

The Spanish, who have won their last 13 Davis Cup ties at home, were favourites heading into the match and they justified that billing following victories by big guns Rafael Nadal and David Ferrer against the defending champions in Madrid's Las Ventas bullring..

World number one Nadal overcame an early setback to defeat unfancied opponent Sam Querrey 6-7 (5-7) 6-4 6-3 6-4 in the opening match while Ferrer, number five in the world, showed tremendous fight to overcome Andy Roddick in an epic five-setter, triumphing 7-6 (7-5) 2-6 1-6 6-4 8-6.

Those two victories mean Spain now need just one more to make the final, with Feliciano Lopez and Fernando Verdasco taking on Mike Bryan and Mardy Fish in the next match in Saturday's doubles.

The US would have had high hopes of success in that doubles match but the recent withdrawal of Bob Bryan to a shoulder injury was a huge blow, breaking up his top-ranked partnership with twin brother Mike.

Despite that and his side's 2-0 deficit, US captain Patrick McEnroe is not throwing in the towel, saying: "We're up against it, but we knew that coming here that we were up against it.

"We will try and win the doubles tomorrow, that's our only thought now, we want that point and we will give it a shot.

"I'm disappointed we are down 2-0 but overall I'm happy with the way the guys have played and the way they've handled themselves. They've a lot to be proud of."

The US always had a mountain to climb right from the off as Davis Cup debutant Querrey, a late replacement for James Blake, was pitted against Nadal in the opening rubber.

But any expectations of an easy Spanish win proved wide of the mark as the 20-year-old Querrey gave Nadal a major scare by taking the first set and then establishing a 2-0 0-15 lead on the Spaniard's serve in the second.

The possibility of a shock upset looked on the cards at that point, but Nadal showed his class to take the victory and improve his remarkable record on his favoured clay surface, which now stands at 122 wins from his 125 matches.

"I'm very happy," said Nadal. "I'm aware of the fact I got here short on energy after a long season, but I want to thank the crowd for their support. It was very important to get off to a winning start."

The 20,000-strong partisan crowd made themselves heard throughout the two matches, while another factor was the high altitude of the Spanish capital.

Nadal felt that favoured the 6ft 6in Querrey, who was able to stay back and make the most of the high bounce.

"Sam is a very good player. Maybe the altitude made it a little bit easier for him. It was very tough today," said the Mallorcan.

Reflecting on making his Davis Cup debut, Querrey said: "I think I played well, I didn't get caught up in the moment, I showed him I could play a little bit. It was a tough four-setter."

Following Querrey's loss, the US pinned their hopes on Roddick to get them back on level terms, but despite a typically power-packed display the world number eight could not save the defending champions from another defeat.

Roddick boomed down 23 aces in the match - more than double Ferrer's tally and also more than Nadal and Querrey produced together in the first match - but it was Ferrer who took the honours despite looking dead and buried at the end of the third set.

"I think the public were essential. When you play at home you need the warmth and support of the crowd. It was close in the fifth set and I needed them on my side," said Ferrer, who admits he was well prepared for Roddick's thunderous serve, which regularly reached around 150mph.

"We knew when we played here what the situation would be concerning the effects of altitude. It was the same for us as it was for Roddick," said Ferrer.

A disappointed Roddick said: "I think I played well today. I thought the level from both players in the fifth set was high."

The winners of this semi-final will face either Argentina or Russia in the final.