October 30th

World number one Rafael Nadal moved into the last eight of the Paris masters with a 6-3 6-2 victory against France's Gael Monfils.

But the win was not quite as straightforward as the scoreline suggests, with the Spaniard forced to save nine break points.

But Nadal broke Monfils three times, clinching victory on his first match point when the Frenchman hit a forehand wide.

"I'm not playing my best level, but I'm not playing badly," Nadal said. "If I can improve a bit for tomorrow and for Shanghai I think I can finish the year playing well.

Nadal will play sixth seed Nicolay Davydenko in the quarter-finals, after the Russian crushed 2005 champion Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic 6-1 6-1.

Despite his place atop the rankings, the French and Wimbledon champion admits he feels people still regard long-time number one Roger Federer as tennis' top dog.

"Roger had four or five years with the number one, winning two, three Grand Slams a year," Nadal added. "So for that reason I think everybody says Federer is the best."