Nadal reaches 7th straight Monte Carlo final

MONACO (AP) — Six-time defending champion Rafael Nadal beat Andy Murray 6-4, 2-6, 6-1 in a thrilling match to reach the Monte Carlo Masters final on Saturday.

The top-ranked Spaniard was made to work for nearly three hours by Murray for his 36th straight win at the clay-court tournament, dropping a set at the tournament for the first time since the 2009 final against Novak Djokovic.

"It is a fantastic victory for me against a very difficult opponent," Nadal said. "(To) start the clay court season being in the final is very good for me."

He will play David Ferrer, who is looking for his third title this year, in an all-Spanish final. Nadal thinks he will have to improve on his performance against Murray.

"I think I played too short for a lot of moments," Nadal said. "I think I had few more mistakes than usual."

Ferrer is unbeaten on clay so far this season, winning a title at Acapulco, Mexico, and he also beat Nadal in the Australian Open quarterfinals. Nadal leads 11-4 overall but has lost once to Ferrer on clay, although that was in 2004.

"He had a fantastic start to the season. He hasn't lose yet on clay this year," Nadal said. "He's very dangerous, it's going to be a very difficult match."

Nadal was full of praise for Murray, tipping him to keep improving on clay in the leadup to the French Open, where Murray has never been past the quarterfinals.

"He has unbelievable potential. He's very good on all the surfaces," Nadal said. "There's no reason why he cannot play very well on clay because his serve is good, his movements are very good, and his shots are with topspin."

Murray, who is 4-10 against Nadal, thinks he has some way to go before he can beat Nadal on his favorite surface.

"I want to try to play better than that," Murray said. "I'll need to, if I want to beat him, because he's going to improve the next few weeks, for sure, the more he plays on clay."

The third-seeded Murray took a medical timeout at 3-0 down in the third set and had his right elbow massaged.

The start of the match was delayed for 30 minutes while Murray had a cortisone injection into his elbow and wondered whether he would play.

"I had a cortisone injection, local anesthetic in my elbow before the match," Murray said. "I was really like uptight about it. I'd never had one before, didn't know what the feeling was going to be like. The doctor said that would probably be what would be suggested even if I didn't play the match, that they would suggest a cortisone injection, like an anti-inflammatory."

He said he'll have an exam on Sunday, but believed it shouldn't keep him off the tour.

Nadal looked to be coasting to another straight-sets win at 4-1 up but Murray rallied superbly, edging the five-time French Open champion 9-7 in winners in the first set, and 13-3 in a second set of outstanding quality.

"He's the best player in the world and there's a reason for that," Murray said. "It's good to be close, but I think I could have done better."

Nadal lost his serve six times in the match, and particularly struggled when Murray stepped inside to hit angled winners.

"I was being patient. I was playing a ball with good height," Murray said. "When he left it a bit short, I was sort of stepping in."

With his surge, however, the pain came back at 2-0 down in the third. He argued unsuccessfully with the umpire for a medical timeout, and by the time the trainer could see him, he was down 3-0.

Earlier, fourth-seeded Ferrer beat seventh-seeded Jurgen Melzer of Austria 6-3, 6-2 to reach his second Masters final, having lost his first in Rome to Nadal last year.

"I'm full of confidence. I feel good physically, and also with my tennis," Ferrer said. "I hope I'll keep going."