SHANGHAI, China -- Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic overcame tough challenges in their quarterfinals at the Shanghai Masters on Friday and moved a step closer to a possible showdown in the final. Air Max 97 Cheap Mens . Top-ranked Nadal saved three set points and finally closed out a 20-minute tiebreak in the first set against Switzerlands Stanislas Wawrinka before winning 7-6 (10), 6-1. Djokovic, the defending champion, needed nearly 2 1/2 hours to rally past Frances Gael Monfils 6-7 (4), 6-2, 6-4. Djokovic and Nadal improved to a combined 20-0 record against the pair. Their semifinal opponents had much easier matches. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga defeated Florian Mayer 6-2, 6-3, and Juan Martin del Potro advanced with a 6-3, 6-3 win over Nicolas Almagro. Tsonga next plays Djokovic, while del Potro meets Nadal. If Djokovic and Nadal do meet in the final, it would be their 39th professional matchup -- and second in as many weeks. Djokovic defeated Nadal last Sunday in the China Open final in Beijing after the Spaniard was assured of retaking the No. 1 ranking from him. Nadal had a lengthy first set against Wawrinka -- a player who had never taken a set off him in 10 matches. After fending off three set points by Wawrinka, the Spaniard hit a cleverly disguised drop shot from the baseline to go up 11-10 in the tiebreak and finally managed to win it on his fourth set point with a forehand winner. "Match in general, first set especially, was very, very hard one," Nadal said. "Positive thing, when he was playing well, I was playing well, too. I was able to resist. If I was not playing well, I was going to lose that set." Djokovic looked out of sorts against Monfils. The Serb hadnt been broken in his two previous matches in Shanghai, but he dropped serve twice in the first three games. "Inexplicably, I started serving quite bad, but not many unforced errors," he said. "Its just sometimes that you start off slowly and youre not feeling the ball as much." Monfils played remarkable defence in the first set, sliding and stretching for every ball and forcing errors. At one point, Djokovic was so frustrated, he clenched his fists and let out a full-throttle scream. "Today was a very physical match and very intense," he said. "I knew coming into the match that hes going to run for every ball and hes going to make me play an extra shot. Sometimes I was even surprised with the balls that hes getting back." In the second set, it was Monfils turn to get emotional. Down 3-1, he sprinted after a drop shot and did a split trying to reach it, falling on his back. After lying still for 15 seconds, he finally wandered back to the service line -- and received a time violation. Monfils angrily questioned the umpire about the rule and berated him on the changeover. Then, a couple of games later, he began grimacing in pain and took an injury timeout to have a trainer massage his abdominal muscles. He never recovered, looking increasingly drained in the third set. "It was really tough," said the Frenchman, who ousted Roger Federer in the third round. "I get a bit scared with my abs. It was tough for me to serve full bore. For sure, against Novak, its impossible to win if not serving 100 per cent." Meanwhile, Del Potro and Tsonga each spent a little over an hour on the court. Del Potro, the 2009 U.S. Open champion, moved back into the top five in the rankings on Monday for the first time in more than three years. He believes hes capable of challenging Nadal, Djokovic and Andy Murray for Grand Slam titles again. A win in Shanghai would make a statement: Hes never won a Masters title and he would have to get past Nadal and possibly Djokovic to do so. "I felt close to them in some parts of the year, some matches during this year, like in Wimbledon (where he lost in a five-set semifinal to Djokovic), or when I beat Djokovic (and) Murray in Indian Wells," he said. Tsonga is also on the comeback trail. He missed several months with a knee injury and also parted ways with his coach, Roger Rasheed, after less than a year. Hes slipped to No. 9 in the rankings -- his lowest position in two years. Tsonga believes he has a good shot against Djokovic, despite losing their past eight matches. "I think he has lost more matches this year than the other years, so maybe its an opportunity for me," Tsonga said. Cheap Air Max 97 Green China . With a win tonight, Buehrle will match Yankees ace Masahiro Tanaka for the most wins in the majors with 11. Buehrle is 10-4 with a 2.32 earned run average, but has lost his last three starts, including a 7-3 setback at Yankee Stadium last Wednesday. Cheap Air Max 97 Pink China . Perhaps their first trip to the city of Winnipeg in 16 years can serve as the shakeup they need. http://www.cheapairmax97fromchina.com/cheap-air-max-97-blue-china/ . Pospisil, from Vancouver, and Sock will compete for the title against defending champions and top seeds Bob and Mike Bryan of the United States, who defeated the 12th-seeded French duo of Michael Llodra and Nicolas Mahut 7-6 (4), 6-3, 6-2.BEREA, Ohio - Browns starting Pro Bowl cornerback Joe Haden is not practicing because of an injured hip.Haden rode a stationary bike and worked with a trainer on the side Wednesday during the portion of practice open to the media as the Browns (2-2) began preparing for Sundays home game against the Pittsburgh Steelers (3-2). Browns coach Mike Pettine said hes cautiously optimistic Haden will be able to play.Haden got hurt in the second half of Sundays historic comeback at Tennessee. Pettine did not know how Haden got hurt, but after being treated, the four-year veteran did not miss a play.The Browns defence, which has underachieved so far this season, will be without defensive end Phil Taylor for the next few weeks. Nike Air Max 97 For Sale. Taylor underwent knee surgery Wednesday and Pettine said it will be a couple weeks before the Browns know how long theyll be without the 6-foot-3, 335-pound run stopper.Taylor was injured during the first half before the Browns rallied for a 29-28 win, overcoming a 25-point deficit a€” the largest in league history by a road team.A first-round draft pick in 2011, Taylor has made 41 career starts. He missed the first eight games in 2012 with a chest injury.Also, Browns Pro Bowl left tackle was on the field but not in pads during practice. He has been getting an occasional day off to rest.___AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP_NFL ' ' '