ROGER FEDERER

MADRID (AP) – Defending champion Roger Federer rallied from a set and a break down to beat Ernests Gulbis 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 Friday and secure a place in the Madrid Masters semifinals.

Federer lost to Gulbis last month at the Rome Masters in his first clay-court match of the season, and the Latvian looked set to repeat the upset until the top-ranked Swiss found his stride in the second set.

“I think it's one of the toughest things in tennis if you lose against a player and you have to play against him in the next couple of weeks,” Federer said. “I was very happy with the way I was able to return and mix up the game a bit and at the end I thought  it was a really great performance.”

Gulbis took a 3-0 lead in the first by converting his first break point when the onrushing Federer failed to return a ball driven at his feet. Federer then saved three set points before the Latvian converted his fourth with an ace, and continued by breaking Federer again to start the second.

But it was all Federer from there, as he broke back immediately when Gulbis sent a forehand long and then dominated the rest of the set – despite having to save three break points himself at 3-1.

In the decider, Federer used a perfectly judged backhand lob to break for a 2-1 lead, and was never threatened on his serve the rest of the way. He converted his first match point with a forehand winner, shortly after a light rain started falling over the court.

Federer will play ninth-seeded David Ferrer, who beat 2008 champion Andy Murray 7-5, 6-3.

The third-seeded Murray, who turns 23 on Saturday, struggled to handle Ferrer's deep groundstrokes.