Djokovic reaches China Open semis

Top-seeded Novak Djokovic barely broke sweat Friday in winning 6-1, 6-2 against Jurgen Melzer of Austria in the quarterfinals at the China Open. Playing in his first event since losing the U.S. Open final to Andy Murray, the Serb served 12 aces and saved both break points he faced. He delighted fans after the conclusion of his 53-minute match when he signed a television camera by writing his name in Chinese characters. Djokovic will play unseeded Florian Mayer of Germany on Saturday. Mayer celebrated his 29th birthday Friday in style with a 6-3, 6-4 win over Chinese wild card Zhang Ze. The second-ranked Djokovic has yet to play a seeded player this week. Nevertheless, he struggled in his opening match before winning in three sets against German qualifier Michael Berrer.