World number one Roger Federer eased into the Cincinnati Masters final on Saturday as Rafael Nadal was ousted by Serbian Novak Djokovic in the other semifinal.

Federer clinched a 6-2, 7-6 win over Briton Andy Murray who failed to become the fourth man to win the Canada and Cincinnati Masters series titles back to back.

Federer broke second ranked Murray in the fourth and eighth games to take the first set before he took the tiebreak 10-8 in the second to snap his four-match losing streak against Murray.

Last year's runner-up Djokovic produced a brilliant performance in the American hard court season to see off Nadal 6-1, 6-4, who was playing only his second tournament back after two months out with knee injuries.

The Serb forced Nadal into a series of unforced errors and after claiming the first set in 29 minutes, he held off the Spaniard in the second to book a meeting with Federer.

(Xinhua News Agency August 23, 2009)