David Ferrer, the lesser known Spaniard in the ATP World Tour Finals, burst out of Rafa Nadal's shadow to reach the last four on Wednesday with a demolition job on World No. 1 Novak Djokovic at the O2 Arena, in London.

- Ferrer stuns Djokovic

While Nadal's place in the semi-finals is still in doubt after his thrashing at the hands of Roger Federer on Tuesday, the World No. 5 Ferrer made sure he will be around at the weekend with a 6-3, 6-1 defeat of the year's outstanding player.

In the day's other match, Czech Tomas Berdych saved a match point against Djokovic's fellow Serb Janko Tipsarevic to seal a 2-6, 6-3 7-6 victory which means the calculators may be needed to decide who finishes runner-up in Group A on Friday.

The complications mean Djokovic could beat Davis Cup team-mate Tipsarevic, a stand-in for injured Briton Andy Murray, and still fail to go through while a defeat, providing Ferrer beats Berdych, would see him survive.

Whatever the maths, Djokovic said he would need to play "50 percent" better in his next match.
"I have no words to explain this match," Djokovic, who went on a 41-match winning rampage at the start of the year and claimed three of the year's four majors, said.
"Nothing was going well. I don't play at least 50 percent better than I did tonight, I don't think I'll have any chance. You always hope that tomorrow will bring something better."
In front of another sell-out crowd in the 17,500-capacity arena, Djokovic began solidly enough as the first six games of the match went with serve.

However, when the terrier-like Ferrer raced across court on break point to whip a forehand down the line that caught his opponent flat-footed at the net, the match ceased to become a real contest as the 29-year-old from Valencia ran way with it.

World No. 9 Tipsarevic, one of the year's most improved players, can no longer reach the semi-finals after his defeat by Berdych although he can content himself with his $70,000 fee for being an alternate and the $120,000 participation fee after replacing the injured Andy Murray.

"If I have gotten the chance one more time, I would still take that ball early and go to the net and play the volley," said the Serb who began the year ranked 49th in the world.