Top-seeded Rafael Nadal will take on Andy Murray in the final of the Japan Open after both recorded straight-sets victories in Saturday's semifinals.
Nadal powered past Mardy Fish in the second set to beat the American 7-5, 6-1 while Murray was a 6-2, 6-3 winner over David Ferrer.
The Nadal-Fish match was on serve until the 11th game in the opening set, when the Spaniard broke and then served out to love at Ariake Colosseum.
The first set was marked my several long rallies, but as the match progressed Nadal took control and imposed his will with a combination of crisp ground strokes and a strong serve.
Murray broke Ferrer in the third and fifth games of the first set and never looked back in advancing to his fifth final of the season. The Scot was never broken and closed out the match in 1 hour, 21 minutes.
Murray, who had the trainer retape his right foot after the third game of the first set, overpowered Ferrer with strong play from the baseline.
One of the highlights for Murray was his quick, reflexive return near the net of a powerful shot from Ferrer to go up 15-0 in the fifth game of the first set.
The fourth-ranked player in the world has won three titles this season, at Queen's Club, Cincinnati and Bangkok, and lost in the final of the Australian Open to Novak Djokovic.
Nadal holds a 13-4 advantage over Murray in 17 career meetings, including victories in the last five matches. Murray's last victory over Nadal came last year in the semifinals in Toronto.
Aljazeera.net
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