MASON, Ohio  The way Rafael Nadal has played the past three months, Novak Djokovic said, it felt as if he were an almost unbeatable force on the tennis court. But Djokovic, the No. 3 player in the world, did have one caveat.

“Nobody is unbeatable,” said Djokovic, who proved it Saturday night by knocking off Nadal, 6-1, 7-5, in the semifinals of the Cincinnati Masters. “The way he was playing, we all thought he’s not going to lose anytime soon. I tried not to think about his winning streak and his new ranking spot. I tried to focus on my game.

“I know what it takes to win against him on hardcourts. I got the best of it. I knew I had to step in and be aggressive and take the chances.”

The chances he took paid off. In one swoop, Djokovic eliminated Nadal, stopped his 32-match winning streak and defeated the player who is assured of taking over the No. 1 ranking on Aug. 18. If Nadal would have won this tournament, he would have become No. 1 immediately