Rafael Nadal of Spain returns to his compatriot David Ferrer during their final of the Monte Carlo Masters in Monaco yesterday. Nadal won 6-4, 7-5.

Rafael Nadal beat fourth-seeded David Ferrer 6-4, 7-5 yesterday to win his seventh straight Monte Carlo Masters title in Monaco.

The top-ranked Spaniard chalked up his 37th straight win at the claycourt event, where he has not lost since 2003. It was his 44th career title and 19th at a Masters event.

Nadal won the all-Spanish final when Ferrer chopped the ball into the net following a brief exchange.

Nadal had lost his three previous career finals, twice to second-ranked Novak Djokovic of Serbia, and once to Swiss No. 3 Roger Federer. It was the 24-year-old's first title since winning the Japan Open last October.

Argentina's Guillermo Coria was the last player to beat Nadal at Monte Carlo, in the third round in 2003. Nadal missed the 2004 tournament through injury.

Meanwhile, in Moscow Vera Zvonareva powered Russia into its first Fed Cup final in three years when she beat Roberta Vinci 6-4, 6-2 in the first reverse singles yesterday to give the home team a 3-0 lead against defending champion Italy.

The world No. 3 broke Vinci in the ninth game for a 5-4 lead before serving out the first set, then secured two more breaks in the second to seal a comfortable victory after 74 minutes.

In the second reverse singles, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova defeated Sara Errani 7-6 (5), 7-6 (4) to make the scoreline 4-0.

Russia, which won the women's team competition four times between 2004 and 2008, will host the winner of the other semifinal between Belgium and the Czech Republic, in the November final.

In Stuttgart, the United States, a record 17-time Fed Cup champion, was relegated from the top-tier World Group when Melanie Oudin lost her singles match yesterday to Andrea Petkovic of Germany.

Petkovic won 6-2, 6-3 to give Germany an unassailable 3-0 lead in the best-of-five series and relegate the US for the first time. Germany also won the last singles when Sabine Lisicki beat Christina McHale 6-3, 6-4 for a 4-0 lead before the doubles.

"I never won a clinching match before," Petkovic said. "I believe that Germany belongs to the top group and I am really pleased that I won the point."

Germany now returns to the World Group of the top eight nations.

In Lleida, Spain, France was relegated for the first time from the World Group after trailing Spain 1-3 in yesterday's playoff.

France started the day at 1-1 but lost both reverse singles.

Spain's Maria Jose Martinez beat Aravane Rezai 6-1, 6-4 and Lourdes Dominguez-Lino sealed her country's promotion to the top tier by defeating Pauline Parmentier 6-4, 6-4.