Tennis:Marin Cilic halted the comeback of Rafael Nadal in stunning fashion today with a 6-1 6-3 victory in the China Open in Beijing.
The Croatian stormed into a 5-0 lead inside the first 15 minutes of play and never looked back as the world number two offered only token resistance.
The lanky 21-year-old controlled the match with his huge serve and power on both sides of the court to deny Nadal a first final appearance since May following his well documented knee and abdominal injuries.
Nadal garnered two break points in the entire match but was unable to take advantage of either one, and it after saving four match points Cilic finally achieved the inevitable triumph with a rasping forehand winner.
The eighth seed will take on Novak Djokovic in the final after the second seed scored a similarly straight-forward win against Robin Soderling.
The Serbian will reclaim his place as world number three ahead of the absent Andy Murray after overcoming the Swede 6-3 6-3, although the match was closer than the outcome might suggest.
Djokovic broke in the very first game and held all the way to take the first set, but Soderling hit back with a break of his own in the second before the Serb got back on level terms at 2-2.
The crucial break of serve came in the seventh game before Djokovic twice held to take the match and book his place in his eighth final of 2009.
"I assure you that it was a lot more difficult because he's a big server, a big hitter and he was very aggressive throughout the whole match," he said.
"So I was very patient and I waited for my chances that were given to me and I used them at the right time.
"I tried to get as many returns as possible in the court to make him play an extra shot. And that's what I did extremely well."