World tennis number one Roger Federer will face arch rival Rafa Nadal in the Madrid Open final after the Swiss great qualifited by dispatching David Ferrer 7-5 3-6 6-3.
Federer will meet the Spaniard for the first time since beating Nadal in the 2009 Madrid final. That win sparked off a golden spell as Federer went on to capture his first French Open crown before triumphing at Wimbledon.
Nadal, who has a 13-7 winning record against Federer, had earlier ensured he would regain the number two ranking next week when he came from a set down in an all-Spanish semi to see off Nicolas Almagro 4-6 6-2 6-2.
Venus Williams will bid for a 44th career title on Monday when she tackles unseeded Frenchwoman Aravane Rezai in the Madrid Masters final, the day before her elevation to the world number two spot is confirmed.
Williams swept the last nine games in a dominant semi-final display as she crushed Israeli Shahar Peer 6-3 6-0 and earn her fourth final from six events in 2010.
Rezai won an unseeded match-up when Czech Lucie Safarova quit after one set trailing 6-1.
