Moya holds nerve to oust Safin

Moya faces Henman or Johansson in the semis

Carlos Moya overcame a battling performance from Marat Safin to reach the semi-finals of the Monte Carlo Masters.

Moya had two match points at 5-3 in the deciding set before he eventually won through 6-1 2-6 7-6 (7-4).

The Spaniard is in the semi-finals for the first time since he won the event in 1998, the same year he won the French Open.

Neither player could take control of a see-saw match, with Safin as dominant in the second set as Moya was in the first.

Moya clinched what looked like a vital break at 4-3 in the decider but could not close out the match as his eighth-seeded opponent showed admirable fighting qualities to force a tiebreak.

But Moya managed to hold his nerve to clinch a memorable win.

Second seed Juan Carlos Ferrero's path to the semi-finals was far smoother, as he registered a comprehensive 6-3 6-1 defeat of Tommy Haas.

Ferrero, one of the favourites for next month's French Open, was rarely troubled by his opponent, who beat Andy Roddick in the previous round.

The Spaniard's superior clay court acumen told the difference against the fifth seed, who could not cope with Ferrero's pounding groundstrokes.

Ferrero, the highest seed left in the tournament, next faces either compatriot Albert Costa or seventh seed Sebastien Grosjean.

"It's getting better and better," said Ferrero of his performance.

"I'd like to go further."

Haas sqaundered a lead in the first set

But it was Haas who led 3-2 in the first set, only to lose the next eight games.

A set down and trailing 4-0 in the second, the fifth-seeded German broke his opponent but conceded the next two games to crash out.

Ferrero has not progressed further than the quarterfinals in any event since the start of the season and was shaky in his second-round match here against Felix Mantilla.

Ferrero won last year's Italian Open and was a finalist at the German Open, both on clay.

He has also reached the semifinals of the French Open, the only Grand Slam played on clay, the last two years.

He will face France's Sebastien Grosjean in the semi-final.

Grosjean clinched his place in the last four with a routine 6-4 6-2 win over Spain's Albert Costa.

"I feel better and better and am having fewer problems with my movement," Grosjean said, referring to a groin injury which had been troubling him.

"But Albert gave me lots of points - he helped me a lot. Against Ferrero I will have to be at 100%."