ROME -- Milos Raonic was a few points away from locking up a spot in a Masters 1000 final for the second time in his career. Instead a letdown in a second-set tiebreaker proved costly for the Canadian as he dropped a three-set decision to Novak Djokovic on Saturday at the Italian Open. The second-ranked Djokovic will now renew his rivalry with top-ranked Rafael Nadal in the championship match Sunday. There will be an enticing womens championship too, with top-ranked Serena Williams to face Sara Errani, the tournaments first Italian finalist in nearly 30 years. Djokovic took his time before figuring out Raonics massive serve for a 6-7 (5), 7-6 (4), 6-3 victory in a three-hour match at the Foro Italico. "I did the things I wanted to do. I didnt execute in the moments I would have liked but I did create a lot of opportunities for myself," Raonic said. "I just wish I would have played a few situations differently. I had the right approach but wasnt able to execute well (all) of the time. "I felt I had a chance in the match. I brought my best tennis (so) I could give myself an opportunity -- which I was able to do today. It came down to a few moments and he performed better in those moments than I did." Raonic, from Thornhill, Ont., had 55 winners but also made 42 unforced errors. The 23-year-old missed out on three break-point chances in the second set while Djokovic earned an early break in the third for a lead he wouldnt relinquish. "It was a tight match that was decided in the first two sets on a few points," Djokovic said. "He put a lot of pressure on my service games. And when you serve that well, you dont have as much pressure on your return games." Raonics serve flirted with the 230 km/h mark at times and he fired 17 aces. "I cant recall the last time when I was feeling so helpless in the return games," Djokovic said. "It was brutal." In mens doubles action, Canadas Daniel Nestor and Serbian partner Nenad Zimonjic reached the final with a 7-6 (3), 4-6, 12-10 win over Bob and Mike Bryan of the United States. Raonic lost to Nadal in the final of the 2013 Rogers Cup in his lone Masters 1000 final appearance. He will return to a career-high No. 9 in the world rankings on Monday. Raonic will also be a top-eight seed at the French Open in two weeks since Argentinas Juan Martin Del Potro -- currently the world No. 7 -- will be unable to compete because of injury. The Italian Open is the last key clay-court tuneup before the upcoming French Open. Having been stretched to three sets in his opening three matches this week, Nadal finally put in a complete performance with a 6-2, 6-2 win over Grigor Dimitrov in the late semifinal. "Today was a good confirmation that I really played better ... a lot of positive things," Nadal said. "(Djokovic) is playing great and its going to be a really tough match." Nadal holds a 22-18 career edge vs. Djokovic but the Serb won their last meeting for the Sony Open title in March in Key Biscayne, Florida. Nadal already has a record seven titles in Rome, while Djokovic is seeking his third championship at the Foro Italico. They have met in three finals here, with Nadal winning two of them. Williams overcame a second-set lapse to beat Ana Ivanovic 6-1, 3-6, 6-1 and gain a measure of revenge for a fourth-round loss to the Serb at this years Australian Open. Using vocal crowd support to her advantage, Errani fought back from a 4-1 deficit in the second set for a 6-3, 7-5 win over two-time Rome champion Jelena Jankovic. Williams is aiming for her third Rome title, having won this clay-court tuneup for Roland Garros in 2002 and last year. The American is 6-0 in her career against Errani and lost just one game in their last meeting, in the semifinals of last years French Open. "Shes just taken her game to a whole new level and she has so much confidence beating two really good top-10 players and two really great clay-court players," Williams said, also referring to Erranis win over second-seeded Li Na in the quarter-finals. "So I have a lot of work to do tomorrow. Its not going to be easy. And she has nothing to lose and she has the crowd behind her. So its going to be a really tough match for me." Nadal went the distance against Gilles Simon, Mikhail Youzhny and Andy Murray in his opening rounds this week but had relatively little trouble against Dimitrov, who was playing in his first Masters series semifinal. Afterward, Djokovic appealed for help for his flood-hit native Serbia, and wrote a message of support on a camera lens, adding I love you in Cyrillic. "This is a total catastrophe of biblical proportions," he said. "Half the country is in danger of not having electricity." Errani drew emotion from the crowd. "There were a few moments when I thought I might not pull it off but the fans were huge," said Errani, who is attempting to become the first Italian to win the tournament since Raffaella Reggi took the 1985 title in Taranto. The last Italian man to win was Adriano Panatta back in 1976. Its already Erranis best result since reaching the 2012 French Open final. Jankovic, the 2007 and 2008 Rome champion, repeatedly asked the chair umpire to come down and check marks but none of them were overturned, resulting only in the crowd stepping up its encouragement for Errani. "Just do it, Sara. Just do it, Sara," the fans cheered late in the second set. The highly partisan crowd frequently applauded Errani while points were still being played and cheered even when Jankovic double-faulted. "(The crowd) was all on her side but its normal, shes the local player," Jankovic said. "I tried to stay focused on my game, and play my tennis but she was the better player today." ------ With files from The Canadian Press. Christian Blake Jersey . -- Darrelle Revis says at least 26 teams called after he was released by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Ryan Neal Jersey . - Steve Stricker usually doesnt show up at a tournament on Sunday. http://www.cheapfalconsjerseysauthentic.com/?tag=authentic-jaeden-graham-jersey . Bobrovsky posted a 2-0-1 record with a 1.58 goals-against average and .950 save percentage to help the Blue Jackets (35-26-6) gain five of a possible six points last week. He capped the week by making 32 saves and stopping 2-of-4 shootout attempts in a 2-1 win over the Minnesota Wild on Saturday. Josh Harris Jersey . Seth Smith hit a towering drive for a tying homer leading off the eighth and Chris Denorfia singled home two runs to give the Padres a 3-1 victory against the rival Dodgers in baseballs North American opener Sunday night. Kyle Vasey Jersey . Its a blessing and a burden for nine sons of former NHL players who are all expected to be taken in the first four rounds of the draft this weekend.WASHINGTON -- Casey McGehees fourth hit of the game drove in the go-ahead run in the 10th inning, and Reed Johnson doubled home two more as the Miami Marlins defeated the Washington Nationals 8-5 on Wednesday night. Ed Lucas singled off Jerry Blevins (2-2) to open the 10th and Christian Yelich walked. After Derek Dietrich bunted the runners over, the Nationals intentionally walked Giancarlo Stanton. McGehee then lined a single off the base of the wall in left, scoring Lucas, while Yelich stopped at third. That became moot when Johnson doubled. Yelich and Stanton scored to make it 7-4, and Donovan Solano singled home the eighth run. Kevin Slowey (1-0) worked one inning for the win and Steve Cishek pitched the 10th, allowing one run. Wilson Ramos, who went 3 for 6, hit a solo homer for Washington to tie the game in the seventh. Nate McLouth tied a career high with four hits. The Nationals, who have lost six of seven, loaded the bases with no outs in the eighth, but failed to score. Miami starter Henderson Alvarez blanked Washington for five innings. He led 4-0, but left with elbow stiffness and the Nationals rallied against the Miami bullpen. Alvarez gave up five hits and threw 62 pitches. He was seeking his first win since May 6, and his first road win of the season. Washington starter Jordan Zimmermann struggled for the fourth straight game, allowing four runs -- three earned -- and eight hits over five innings. In his past four starts, he has given up 15 earned runs in 22 2-3 innings and his ERA has risen from 2.92 to 4.07. With Alvarez gone, the Nationals rallied, batting around in the sixth. Singles by Adam LaRoche and Ramos off Chris Hatcher, followed by a walk from Ian Desmond, loaded the bases. Hatcher struck out Kevin Frandsen for the second out, but McLouth hit the first pitch he saw for a two-run double.dddddddddddd Dan Jennings came on to face pinch-hitter Danny Espinosa, who walked. Denard Span then hit a bouncer that could have ended the inning, but first baseman Garrett Jones threw wide of Jennings at first for an error and Desmond scored to make it 4-3. Ramos tied it in the seventh when he sent a 2-0 fastball from A.J. Ramos into the Marlins bullpen for his first home run. Despite two baserunning mistakes, the Marlins built a 4-0 lead. In the first, Yelich doubled to lead off, but broke for third on a grounder to short and was thrown out. The Marlins had first and second with no outs in the fourth after Dietrich singled and Stanton walked. McGehee then grounded a single to left. Third base coach Brett Butler held Dietrich at third, but Stanton rounded second and came halfway to third before realizing it and was tagged out. However, Jones, Marcell Orzuna and Adeiny Hechavarria collected RBI singles, and Orzuna scored on a throwing error by right fielder Jayson Werth to cap the four-run inning. NOTES: Washington 3B Ryan Zimmerman (fractured right thumb) took live batting practice and fielded ground balls Wednesday for the first time since going on the DL April 13. . The first ballot update for the NLs starting lineup in the All-Star game was released on Wednesday and Stanton was fourth among outfielders, trailing third-place Ryan Braun by about 20,500 votes. Washington 2B Anthony Rendon ranks fourth, well-behind leader Chase Utley. . Marlins SS Rafael Furcal (left hamstring strain) will begin a rehab assignment Thursday with Class A Jupiter (Florida). . Bot