Djokovic advances to Rogers Cup semifinals

The world's No. 1-ranked player from Serbia, Novak Djokovic needed just 1 hour, 13 minutes to beat fifth-seeded Gael Monfils of France 6-2, 6-1 on Friday night to advance to the semifinals of the Master Series tournament.The 2007 Rogers Cup champion will face another Frenchman, 13th seeded Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, who ousted No. 8 seed Nicolas Almagro of Spain 6-4, 6-4.

In recent days, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Andy Murray suffered upsets, but Djokovic looks to be getting stronger each day as he used his overpowering forehand to improve his 2011 match record to 51-1 before a full house at Uniprix Stadium."I have played the best match of the tournament, no doubt," said the 24-year-old Djokovic, who is now 15-1 against top-10 players this year. "Everything was going well. I'm happy to see my game is progressing each day."Djokovic is now 7-0 in his career against Monfils, but it's a different story with Tsonga, who holds a 5-3 edge in their head-to-head meetings.

Del Potro issues Grand Slam warning at Rogers Cup

 Juan Martin Del Potro stormed to a 6-4 6-0 first round win over Finland's Jarkko Nieminen at the Rogers Cup Monday.  the Argentine continuing his impressive comeback with the U.S. Open on the horizon.The 22-year-old opened the season with second round losses in Sydney but has been in red hot form since, posting a 34-7 record that included wins at Delray Beach and Estoril.

"I'm doing well this season, I have beaten top 10 players, there have been many good things for me in this year," said Del Potro, who was ranked 484th in February but has clawed his way back into the top 20."Of course, I'm looking forward for the next Grand Slam, it's my favorite and it will be my first time there since 2009, so will be fantastic for my confidence.But it's very tough every tournament for me after 2010. I was completely out of the circuit and now I'm trying to recover my game, my fitness, everything," he added.

Novak Djokovic, Rafa Nadal, Roger Federer and Andy Murray, looking to win the title for a third successive time, return to action Tuesday for the first time since Wimbledon.In evening ceremonies Djokovic accepted the ATP number one ranking trophy while Federer quietly celebrated his 30th birthday.