Rafael Nadal finally got on with his main business in Thailand - playing tennis - and dispatched Belgian qualifier Ruben Bemelmans 6-1, 6-4 Thursday in his first match since winning the US Open. Making his Thailand Open debut after a first-round bye, top-ranked Nadal wasn't troubled. He lost only eight points on serve. Nadal has been treated like a royal since he arrived in Thailand nine days ago, receiving a hero's welcome from government and sports officials when he landed in Bangkok. In Friday's quarterfinals, Nadal will meet either another Belgian, Olivier Rochus, who spoiled Juan Martin del Potro's comeback, or Mikhail Kukushkin of Kazakhstan. Second-seeded Fernando Verdasco of Spain, who accepted a wild card to play in Thailand, crashed out in his opening match in the second round after Benjamin Becker of Germany beat him 6-4, 6-4. A sluggish Verdasco quickly fell behind 4-0. He rallied back but the more disciplined Becker won the set 6-4. Verdasco dropped the ninth game of the second on a double fault, and Becker served well to set up match point at 40-30, closing it out with an impressive volley. “It was tough. I was practicing well but the match was different. He played yesterday one match and got more rhythm,” Verdasco said. “He played better than me. He adapted better than me, he served well and didn't make many unforced errors. He deserved the victory more than me.” Earlier, seventh-seeded Viktor Troicki of Serbia - last year's finalist - also was ousted by Jarkko Nieminen of Finland 7-6 (4), 6-2. Wozniacki in semis Top-seeded Caroline Wozniacki was given an easy path into the Pan Pacific Open semifinals Thursday when Agnieszka Radwanska retired with a left foot injury in the first set. Trailing 5-0, the sixth-seeded Radwanska consulted with a trainer during the changeover before deciding she could not continue. Wozniacki, aiming for her sixth title this year, will meet eighth-seeded Victoria Azarenka of Belarus in the semis Friday. Azarenka defeated American qualifier Coco Vandeweghe 6-2, 6-1. Wozniacki could overtake Serena Williams as No. 1 in the world rankings if she lifts the trophy here and reaches the quarterfinals in Beijing next week. In other matches, French Open champion Francesca Schiavone of Italy beat Kaia Kanepi of Estonia 7-5, 4-6, 7-5. The fifth-seeded Schiavone went ahead 6-5 in the third set on a double-fault by Kanepi. She clinched the match with an service winner to the corner. Schiavone will meet seventh-seeded Elena Dementieva of Russia in the semifinals. Dementieva beat compatriot and No. 2 seed Vera Zvonareva 7-5, 6-2. Soderling thru Top-seeded Robin Soderling breezed past Edouard Roger-Vasselin of France 6-0, 6-1 Thursday to reach the quarterfinals of the Malaysian Open. The fifth-ranked Swede dominated the match with his blistering serves and accurate shot making to set up a meeting with Kazakhstan's Andrey Golubev. Golubev overcame South Africa's Kevin Anderson 6-4, 7-6 (4). Soderling only dropped eight points in the first set, which lasted a mere 22 minutes. Roger-Vasselin played more aggressively in the second set and finally held serve to make it 1-0. Third-seeded Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic also advanced by beating Uzbekistan's Denis Istomin 6-4, 6-3, and No. 5 David Ferrer of Spain ousted Yuki Bhambri of India 6-2, 6
