RAFAEL Nadal has booked his ticket to the semis of the ATP Finals with an impressive three-set victory over Stefanos Tsitsipas. Dominic Thiem is the other player progressing from the group, but he lost his final round robin matchup to Andrey Rublev in straight sets.

Rublev had already been eliminated from the tournament following losses to Nadal and Tsitsipas, but it was still an impressive way to go out. Thiem will face the winner of Novak Djokovic and Alexander Zverev in the semis, while Nadal will come up against in-form Russian Daniil Medvedev.

Andrey Rublev (RUS) defeated Dominic Thiem (AUT) 6-2 7-5

Rublev finished his ATP Finals in style, winning 82 per cent of first serve points and breaking Thiem’s serve on four occasions in the victory. It has been a fantastic season for Rublev, as he concludes his ATP Tour campaign with a 41-10 record and five titles. In this contest, Rublev raced away to a 4-0 lead in the first set and always appeared to be in the driver’s seat.

After the match, Rublev said that getting off to a quick start was important.

“I started really well, since the first point [and] since the first return,” Rublev said. “Dominic didn’t start that well and I took advantage [from] the beginning; that helped me to have more confidence and helped me to play better and better. I wish Dominic the best of luck in the semi-finals, he deserves to be where he is and he deserves to win the title.”

Thiem appeared to lack motivation in this match and said that he must refocus ahead of Saturday night’s semi-final.

“Both of [Djokovic and Zverev] are great, both are former champions of this tournament,” Thiem said. “The goal is to find the great intensity tomorrow in practice and then try to be 100 per cent in the match on Saturday, whoever I face.”

Rafael Nadal (ESP) defeated Stefanos Tsitsipas (GRE) 6-4 4-6 6-2

Nadal has now won his last 71 matches when he takes the opening set. Both players’ serving was outstanding in this contest until the end of the second set, when Nadal produced a poorly-timed double fault at 5-4 down. This gave reigning ATP Finals champion Tsitsipas a vital break and sent the match to a decider. The final set started with three consecutive breaks, but Nadal raced away to a 3-1 lead in the midst of the chaos. In trademark fashion, the Spaniard regained his composure on serve and claimed the victory in two hours and five minutes.

Saturday night will mark Nadal’s first trip to the final four of the ATP Finals since 2015. He reflected on his recent runs at the ATP Finals after the match.

“Last year, I [won two matches and] was a little bit unlucky not to be in the semi-finals,” Nadal said. “The year before I had to pull out. It is always difficult to play here against the best players in the world every single day [at the] end of the season. Most of the time, you get here a little bit tired, but this year is a little bit different… I am just excited to be in the semi-finals and I hope to be ready to try my best.”