Azarenka sets up Williams final in Rome

World number one Serena Williams said she hoped to improve her game for the French Open after easing into the Rome Open final with a 6-3, 6-0 win over Simona Halep which ended the qualifier's dream week in the Italian capital.

Williams, the 15-times Grand Slam winner, stretched her run of consecutive wins to 23 on her way to Sunday's final, where she will meet Victoria Azarenka in a final for the first time since her defeat to the Belarusian earlier this year in Doha.

Azarenka, the third seed, proved too strong for Italian hopeful Sara Errani in a 6-0, 7-5 win in the other semi-final that was interrupted by rain twice and once by Errani, who called for her coach after losing the first three games.

Williams, meanwhile, will head to next week's French Open as one of the favourites and with revenge on her mind after a shock defeat in last year's tournament to Frenchwoman Virginie Razzano.

Ahead of that challenge, the 30-year-old American will be hoping for a more telling workout against Azarenka after a limpid semi-final in which Romanian Halep failed to offer any kind of challenge.

Williams was so unhappy with her match that she went to practice for two hours before speaking to reporters, and said: "I am only unhappy with the way I played and I need to work on a few things and be able to do well here and next week."

Asked about Azarenka and their last final encounter in the Gulf, the American indicated she expects an altogether different challenge on Sunday.

"She played well in that match (in Doha) and I was happy in the final," said Williams. "It was a tough tournament and I had opportunities that I wasn't able to use, and Viki plays well in the vital points."

Errani had been gifted a place in the semi-final when defending two-time champion Maria Sharapova of Russia withdrew early on Friday citing a fever.

However it was clear from the start that the Italian would be up against it.

In spite of the hot and humid conditions, Azarenka barely broke sweat on her way to a first-set whitewash.

Errani, who had beaten the Belarusian only once in their six previous encounters, emerged with bigger ambitions in the second set.

But despite battling all the way, she was ultimately broken in the 10th game before Azarenka served to take a 6-5 lead.

Errani valiantly saved three match points in the final game but was finally broken by the more powerful Belarusian.

Federer stops Janowicz to reach Rome Masters semis

Second seed Roger Federer overcame a brief scare in the second set to beat Jerzy Janowicz 6-4 7-6(2) and reach the semi-finals of the Rome Masters.

Against a tricky opponent, highly confident after back-to-back wins over top 10 Frenchman, Federer perfectly judged the first set, sticking with Janowicz despite facing early break points before breaking to seal the set at the first opportunity.

The Pole struck back with an early break in the second set but again Federer refused to panic, eventually breaking back in an epic 10th game before going on to wrap things up in surprisingly straight-forward fashion in the tie-break.

Federer will next face Benoit Paire, the unseeded Frenchman crushing Spaniard Marcel Granollers 6-0 6-1 in his first Masters series quarter-finals.

After consecutive victories of Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Richard Gasquet, it was unsurprising to seed Janowicz make a quick start to the match, holding with ease before earning himself an early break point in just the second game.

Federer saved it before going on to exchange comfortable service holds with the mercurial Pole that looked to have the first set headed for a tie-break.

But Federer struck in the 10th game at his very first opportunity, first hitting into the body of Janowicz before going down the line with a forehand passing shot winner.

The Pole immediately bounced back in impressive fashion, breaking in the opening game with a sublime backhand lob.

Both players held with ease throughout most of the set but just like in the first, when it came down to the moment of pressure, Janowicz cracked.

With Janowicz serving to extend the match into a third set, Federer found himself in possession of just his second break point of the match when the Pole slapped down a double fault.

Although Janowicz saved the first, another double fault a couple of points later did not help his cause and this time Federer did break back with a backhand volley winner across court.

The Pole did hold under extreme pressure two games later to force the tie-break but by this time Federer could sense victory, charging through the breaker for the loss of just two points and sealing the victory with another forehand winner.

Nadal ousts Ferrer in Rome slug-fest

Defending champion Rafael Nadal remained on course for the Rome Masters final after coming through a tough quarter-final against fellow Spaniard David Ferrer on Friday.

Nadal prevailed 6-4, 4-6, 6-2 in a 2hr 46min thriller in which Ferrer's challenge only petered out in the deciding set.

Nadal will now meet Tomas Berdych in Saturday's semi-final after the Czech ousted world number one and top seed Novak Djokovic.

It is Nadal's second win over Ferrer inside a fortnight after his quarter-final victory over him on his way to the Madrid Masters title last week.

Berdych stuns Djokovic in Rome

Sixth seed Tomas Berdych recovered from a set and a break down to dump world number one Novak Djokovic out of the Rome Masters at the quarter-finals stage.

Berdych was just two points away from defeat before he managed to force his way into the match and beat Djokovic 6-2 5-7 6-4.

"It's a special victory. I was on 11 defeats in a row and it had to stop," said Berdych, who did not even create a break point until Djokovic served for the match at 5-3 in the second set.

Next up for Berdych will be a match-up against either world number five Rafael Nadal or world number four David Ferrer.

"It was a very weird match," Djokovic told reporters. "I lost concentration and I started to play too defensively and did not convert my opportunities and I lost this match on my own.

"I need to make sure that I don't have highs and lows. I'm sure that I will be ready for Paris."

Djokovic cruised through the first set in just 32 minutes, producing some sublime tennis as he broke in the fourth and eighth games while barely being tested on his own serve.

The second set looked to be following much the same path when Djokovic broke in the sixth game, with the net helping him create the perfect drop shot when his return of serve caught the top of the tape and rolled over.

But with Djokovic serving for the set, it all fell apart for the world number one. A forehand into the net handed Berdych a lifeline, a break back point.

The Czech took it with a rattled backhand winner down the line before breaking again in the 11th game and levelling up the match at one set apiece with a cross court forehand winner at the first time of asking.

An early break for Berdych in the third set compounded Djokovic’s woes as Berdych sought just his second win over the Serb in 15 attempts.

Berdych was forced to fend off a break point in the very next game, but did so with a forehand volley winner, before marching confidently through the remainder of his service games and towards the semi-finals.

Serving to stay in the match at 4-5, Djokovic posted a solid hold to leave Berdych serving for the match.

Three match points quickly followed for the Czech before his only real stumble of the final set. A backhand long and two forehands wide, one in either direction, quickly allowed Djokovic to level up at deuce.

But the sixth seed held his nerve, earning himself a fourth chance with a vicious forehand that Djokovic could only net in response, before booking his place in the semi-finals with an ace.

'Sick' Sharapova withdraws from Italian Open

Maria Sharapova withdrew from the Italian Open before her quarter-final with Italy's Sara Errani on Friday because of "physical problems", organisers said.

Italian Open officials did not elaborate further on the reasons for Sharapova's Rome exit but the 26-year-old said on her Twitter account she was sick.

"I'm sorry for having to withdraw from the tournament this morning. Didn't recover after being sick last week and it got me again last night," Sharapova tweeted.

"It really is one of my favourites tournaments during the year and I can't wait to be back next year."

Sharapova showed no signs of any physical problems in easing through her third round match against Sloane Stephens on Thursday, the Russian winning 6-2 6-1.

The news comes two days after Andy Murray withdrew from the men’s tournament with a hip problem.

Sharapova is set to defend her French Open title later this month.

Top seed Serena Williams is now the overwhelming favourite to lift the title after demolishing Spain's Carla Suarez Navarro 6-2 6-0 on Friday.

Rome Masters (women) quarter-final results:

1-Serena Williams (U.S.) beat Carla Suarez Navarro (Spain) 6-2 6-0
7-Sara Errani (Italy) beat 2-Maria Sharapova (Russia)WO

Rome Masters (women) round three results:

9-Samantha Stosur (Australia) beat 8-Petra Kvitova (Czech Republic) 7-5 2-6 6-1
2-Maria Sharapova (Russia) beat 16-Sloane Stephens (U.S.) 6-2 6-1
3-Victoria Azarenka (Belarus) beat Ayumi Morita (Japan) 6-1 2-0 (Morita retired)
1-Serena Williams (U.S.) beat 14-Dominika Cibulkova (Slovakia) 6-0 6-1
Simona Halep (Romania) beat 13-Roberta Vinci (Italy) 6-4 6-2
Carla Suarez Navarro (Spain) beat Lourdes Dominguez Lino (Spain) 6-2 6-3
7-Sara Errani (Italy) beat 12-Maria Kirilenko (Russia) 6-3 2-0 (Kirilenko retired)
Jelena Jankovic (Serbia) beat 5-Li Na (China) 7-6(2) 7-5

Fluent Federer strolls past Simon

Roger Federer's pursuit of a maiden final in 2013 will continue after he saw off the challenge of Gilles Simon to reach the Internazionali BNL d'Italia quarter-finals on Thursday.

Federer's career has shown signs of decline this season, with the Swiss failing to reach the semi-finals in three of five tournaments entered so far. His most recent outing in Madrid finished in a shock round-of-16 defeat to Kei Nishikori, but there was no repeat in Rome.

Simon, the world No. 17, barely threatened as Federer eased into the last-eight, winning 6-1 6-2. He will now play Jerzy Janowicz, who beat Richard Gasquet 3-6 7-6(2) 6-4.

It took Federer until the fourth game to make his opening impact on Court Centrale, accepting his first break point to push ahead. A simple service hold followed, cemented by a delightful drop shot, as the former world No. 1 opened a 4-1 lead.

Federer's touch was as exquisite as ever, drawing Simon to the net again before firing a backhand winner past him to bring up another break point. A further topspin backhand proved too much to handle for Simon as the Swiss chalked up back-to-back breaks - allowing him to serve out the set in 23 minutes.

The first-set statistics told the story. Simon won only ten points, with Federer almost flawless behind his own serve. It was one-way traffic, and the pattern continued into the second.

There was a simple rhythm to Federer's work: smash Simon back behind the baseline and then disguise drop shots to force him to scramble. That exact tactic sealed another break in the opening game of the second set, setting up a stroll towards victory.

To Simon's credit he defended four more break points at 2-4, but eventually ceded the fifth to allow Federer to serve for the match, which he promptly did to love.

Serena hammers Cibulkova to tie career record winning streak

World number one Serena Williams tied her longest career winning streak with a 6-0 6-1 Rome Masters rout of Dominika Cibulkova, taking her run of victories to 21.

Williams, who served five aces in one game, looks unstoppable but issued a few words of caution.

"Nothing is ever perfect - I learned that last year when I felt perfect," Williams said, referring to her first-round loss at last year's French Open. "I am still in the danger zone.

"I can't remember the other winning streaks, but I hope I can get to 22 and the rest of the matches that I have here.

"Plus seven, and Wimbledon too, so it would be dangerous to lose now."

Williams was joined in the quarter-finals by Maria Sharapova who breezed past Sloane Stephens 6-2 6-1 while Serbia's Jelena Jankovic, a former Rome champion showing signs of a return to her best form, beat China's fifth seed Li Na 7-6 7-5.

Rome Masters (women) round three results:

9-Samantha Stosur (Australia) beat 8-Petra Kvitova (Czech Republic) 7-5 2-6 6-1
2-Maria Sharapova (Russia) beat 16-Sloane Stephens (U.S.) 6-2 6-1
3-Victoria Azarenka (Belarus) beat Ayumi Morita (Japan) 6-1 2-0 (Morita retired)
1-Serena Williams (U.S.) beat 14-Dominika Cibulkova (Slovakia) 6-0 6-1
Simona Halep (Romania) beat 13-Roberta Vinci (Italy) 6-4 6-2
Carla Suarez Navarro (Spain) beat Lourdes Dominguez Lino (Spain) 6-2 6-3
7-Sara Errani (Italy) beat 12-Maria Kirilenko (Russia) 6-3 2-0 (Kirilenko retired)
Jelena Jankovic (Serbia) beat 5-Li Na (China) 7-6(2) 7-5

Nadal battles past qualifier

Six-times former champion Rafael Nadal battled back from a shocking opening set to book his place in the Rome Masters quarter-finals with a 1-6 7-5 6-4 win over Ernests Gulbis.

Nadal was one point away from being on the receiving end of a bagel opening set as qualifier Gulbis before stubbornly forcing his way into the match in the second set.

But the Latvian qualifier refused to go away and even broke back when it looked like Nadal had finally got the measure of his opponent with a break in the sixth game of the third set.

But serving to stay in the match proved to be beyond Gulbis, Nadal eventually securing the win at the third attempt when Gulbis went wide with a cross court backhand.

Nadal will next face compatriot David Ferrer, the fourth seeded Spaniard progressing when Germany’s Philipp Kohlschreiber withdrew from the tournament with vertigo.