ROME — Seven-time Italian Open winner Rafa Nadal lost 7-6(7) 6-2 to Stan Wawrinka on Friday meaning there will be an all-Swiss semi-final after Roger Federer crushed Thomas Berdych 6-3 6-3.
Top seed Novak Djokovic dropped a set for the third successive match before reaching the last four with a 6-3 3-6 6-1 win over Japanese fifth seed Kei Nishikori.
Nadal, the number four seed, twice earned breaks in a tight first set that lasted 76 minutes but slipped through his fingers in a 16-point tiebreak in which he held a 6-2 advantage.
His trademark forehand again let him down at crucial moments and, as doubts crept in, eighth-seeded Wawrinka took control by winning five of the six second set games that went to deuce.