DUBAI: Andy Murray on Friday defeated Rafael Nadal and continued his march towards a possible third World Tennis Championship exhibition tournament title in Abu Dhabi.
In the clash of two former world number 1s, it was the player from Britain who won the all-action semi-final clash 6-3, 7-5, to set a final showdown with world No.5 Andrey Rublev on Saturday at the International Tennis Centre, Zayed Sports City.
Two-time MWTC champion Murray has looked sharp on his return and showed great desire and determination to see off long-time rival Nadal. Murray broke the reigning MWTC champion's serve in game six and never looked back, taking out the first set 6-3.
In the second set, Nadal dug deep but the Briton held his nerves to seal the set 7-5.
"There were definitely some things I did really well out there. It was very special for me to be back out on the court playing against Rafa and playing in front of a big crowd," said Murray after an impressive performance.
Earlier, Andrey Rublev booked a place in the final with a disciplined display against Denis Shapovalov. Rublev won by 7-6, 3-6, 6-4.