Andy Murray reached his first grass-court final Saturday after beating Juan Carlos Ferrero 6-2, 6-4 at the Aegon Championships at Queen's Club. He will next face James Blake, who advanced after fellow American Andy Roddick retired with a foot injury at 4-4 in the first set in the other semifinal. Roddick, a four-time champion here, hurt his foot in the third game after running back on a lob from Blake. After failing to hit the ball between his legs, Roddick stumbled on the edge between the grass court and surrounding concrete. His ankle and foot were taped after Blake had held serve for 4-3, but he retired after the next game. It was not immediately clear whether the injury would affect his participation at Wimbledon, which starts June 22. The top-seeded Murray is trying to become the first British winner of the pre-Wimbledon tournament since Bunny Austin in 1938. Murray put Ferrero under pressure right from the start, breaking to lead 1-0 when his opponent netted a backhand. Serving well and moving swiftly around the court, Murray then raced to a 5-1 lead, breaking a second time at 3-1 when a forehand from Ferrero clipped the net cord and landed long. The second set was more competitive, as Ferrero saved five break points in his first two service games to hold for 2-1. Murray eventually broke for a 4-3 lead after forcing Ferrero into a backhand error. Li ousts Sharapova Maria Sharapova's Wimbledon preparations received a setback Saturday in a 6-4, 6-4 loss to Li Na of China in the Aegon Classic semifinals in Birmingham. The Russian served erratically to drop to 5-1 against the 20th-ranked Li. The former No. 1 player had been out for 10 months with a shoulder injury before returning to action last month at the French Open. Li will play Magdalena Rybarikova of Slovakia, who rallied to defeat Sania Mirza of India 3-6, 6-0, 6-3. Sharapova's serve – revamped to prevent injury - lacked rhythm and conviction, and she was broken six times. She dropped serve to trail 4-2 in the first set after missing a forehand before recovering to trail 5-4. However, she was broken again to lose the set. Sharapova broke to lead 2-0 in the second set, but then lost four straight games and never recovered. She will spend next week practicing at Wimbledon, with the tournament starting June 22. Djokovic-Haas final Novak Djokovic overcame qualifier Olivier Rochus 7-6 (7), 6-4 on Saturday to reach the final of the Gerry Weber Open, and will play Tommy Haas for his first title on grass. Haas rallied to beat German compatriot Philipp Kohlschreiber 2-6, 7-6 (5), 7-6 (3). Djokovic squandered a 4-1 lead in the first set, then wasted three sets points at 5-4 - two of them on forehand errors after long rallies. Rochus, a slightly built player with a deft touch and quick feet, chased down many of Djokovic's shots throughout the match. Rochus held two set points in the tiebreaker but Djokovic took risks and fired winners on both.
