David Ferrer, Stanislas Wawrinka reach quarter-finals in Paris

Paris: Defending champion David Ferrer and Stanislas Wawrinka won in straight sets Thursday to reach the quarter-finals of the Paris Masters.

Ferrer beat Gilles Simon of France 6-2, 6-3, and Wawrinka defeated Nicolas Almagro of Spain 6-3, 6-2.

Wawrinka stayed in contention for one of the two remaining ATP finals spots.

The seventh-seeded Swiss rallied from a 3-1 deficit in the first set and broke Almagro twice in the second. Wawrinka outplayed Almagro, hitting 26 winners to 13 for the Spaniard and making only 15 unforced errors.

Ferrer hit an overhead shot from the baseline to break for a 4-2 lead in the second. The third-seeded Spaniard saved the two break points he faced.