- Rafael Nadal beat Marin Cilic 7-5 7-6 (3) to reach the Shanghai Masters final
- The World No 1 has now extended his winning streak to 16 matches
- Nadal claimed his sixth title of the season after wining the China Open last week
- The Spaniard awaits Roger Federer or Juan Martin Del Potro in Sunday’s final
Rafael Nadal could claim his seventh title of the year at the Shanghai Masters on Sunday.
Nadal increased his current winning streak to 16 matches after beating fourth-seed Marin Cilic 7-5, 7-6 (3) on Saturday in the semifinals and is closing in on his second successive tournament win.
The World No 1, who won a tour-best sixth title of the season at the China Open last week, has now beaten Cilic in five of their six matches.
Rafael Nadal is continuing his resurgence as he closes in on his seventh title of the season
The World No 1 beat Marin Cilic 7-5 7-6 (3) to reach the Shanghai Masters final on Sunday
The Spaniard hadn’t lost his serve in 32 service games but Cilic broke him twice in second set before failing to take the clash to a third set, losing the tie-break 7-3.
At 30-40 in the sixth game of the second set, Nadal netted a forehand volley to surrender his serve for the first time, and responded by twice angrily banging his racket on his leg.
Nadal failed to take advantage of his first match point and again went on to have his serve broken.
Nadal extended his winning streak to 16 and awaits Roger Federer or Juan Martin Del Potro
Leading 6-3 in the second-set tiebreaker, Nadal prevailed on his second match point when Cilic netted a service return.
A finalist in 2009, Nadal will play the winner of the semi-final between second-seed Roger Federer and Juan Martin del Potro.
The Shanghai Masters wants to expand to a 10 or 11 day event, increase its draw size from 64 to 96, and raise prize money to more than $10 million, starting in 2019.
The ATP board is expected to discuss Shanghai’s request in November.