Murray defeats Nadal to set final showdown against Rublev in Abu Dhabi exhibition event

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.

( With inputs from ANI )

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