INDIAN WELLS, Calif. - Rafael Nadal restored order on a day of upsets with a 7-5, 3-6, 6-3 fourth-round victory over big-serving John Isner at the BNP Paribas Open on Wednesday - after Novak Djokovic and Elena Dementieva were ousted.
Seeking his third title at Indian Wells, the third-seeded Nadal withstood Isner's serve-and-volley game under the searing afternoon sun before a partisan crowd backing one of only two American men remaining.
Nadal ended things with a forehand winner into the open court, prompting a huge yell from the defending champion.
"I am feeling really well, and I am feeling good on court," said Nadal, who is playing his first tournament since the Australian Open, when he was hampered by knee injuries.
Isner fired 22 aces and had just one double fault in his first match against Nadal.
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"I felt like I played pretty well. I might have run out of gas in the third set, but that's what he does," Isner said. "He makes you work so hard for every point."
Nadal advanced to the quarterfinals against 19th-seeded Tomas Berdych, a 6-1, 6-1 winner over No. 29 Viktor Troicki.
Andy Roddick beat 22nd-seeded Jurgen Melzer 7-6 (5), 6-4. Roddick will face No. 18 Tommy Robredo, who outlasted the 27th-seeded Marcos Baghdatis 7-5, 0-6, 6-4.
Andy Murray led Nicolas Almagro 6-2, 1-0 when the Spaniard retired with a left ankle injury. Murray will play sixth-seeded Robin Soderling, who beat No. 9 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 6-3, 6-4.
No. 2 Caroline Wozniacki rallied to beat 18th-seeded Zheng Jie 6-4, 4-6, 6-1.
No. 2 Djokovic, the highest seeded men's player remaining and the 2008 winner, lost 7-5, 6-3 to No. 20 seed Ivan Ljubicic.
No. 4 Dementieva struggled with her footwork in a 6-4, 6-3 quarterfinal loss to fifth-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska.
