Federer, Nadal one match away from Shanghai Masters showdown

World number one Rafael Nadal and Swiss tennis maestro Roger Federer will continue their march toward a final collision when they both head into the semi-finals of Shanghai Rolex Masters here on Saturday.

Yesterday, Nadal kept alive his hopes of clinching his first title in Shanghai by overcoming Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria 6-4, 6-7(4), 6-3 in the quarter-finals of the men's singles event that lasted lasted more than three hours.

With the win, the Spanish tennis maestro, who is currently riding a 15-match winning streak, had improved to an ATP World Tour-best 64-9 match record in 2017.

Nadal has not set up a clash against fourth-seeded Marin Cilic of Croatia for a place in the summit showdown.

Meanwhile, 19-time Grand Slam champion Federer cemented his place in the last-four of the tournament by dismantling Richard Gasquet of France 7-5, 6-4 in a one-sided match that also lasted more than an hour.

The second-seeded will now play No. 16 seeded Argentinean Juan Martin del Potro, who eliminated the Swiss in the quarter-finals of the US Open.