Nadal, Djokovic set-up dream US Open final

Defending champion Rafael Nadal booked a US Open title showdown against world number one Novak Djokovic on Saturday with a bruising 6-4, 6-2, 3-6, 6-2 win over British fourth seed Andy Murray.

Nadal, the second seed, will be playing in his 14th Grand Slam final on Monday in what will be a repeat of last year's final where he became the youngest man to complete a career Grand Slam.

Djokovic, the Australian Open and Wimbledon champion, took his 2011 record to 63 wins against just two defeats, and reached a sixth career Grand Slam final, with a 6-7 (7/9), 4-6, 6-3, 6-2, 7-5 win over five-time champion Roger Federer.

In a repeat of his semi-final heroics of 2010, the Serb once again saved two match points to beat Federer.

Defeat in the final Grand Slam of the year also means Federer's streak of consecutive seasons with at least one major title ends at eight.

He claimed the last of his record 16 Grand Slam crowns at the 2010 Australian Open.

"I played my best match of this US Open today," said Nadal, the winner of 10 Grand Slam titles, after completing his 13th win in 17 meetings with Murray.

"I have played Novak five times this year, all in finals, and lost them all. I hope to have better luck this time and I hope New York will help me."

Nadal made sure he could get the majority of support in the final by taking time to remember the victims of the September 11 attacks, ahead of the 10th anniversary on Sunday.

"I just want to send all of my support to the families of the victims of September 11th. I have terrible memories of that day," said the Spaniard, whose victory Saturday was helped by Murray committing 55 unforced errors to his 23.

Defeat for Murray, who reached the semi-finals of all four Grand Slams in 2011, means that Britain's long wait for a first major winner since Fred Perry in 1936 goes on.

"Anyone playing Rafa, you're gonna play a lot of long rallies. So if you can get some opportunities to try and shorten the points, then it would be good to do that," said Murray, the 2008 runner-up.

"Once I went behind, I realized that wasn't working. I was playing longer rallies. Physically I felt decent considering the circumstances. We had quite a lot of points and long games. I needed to be much more patient."

Djokovic avenged his loss at the hands of Federer in the French Open semi-finals, a defeat which ended his 43-match winning run.

Federer had appeared poised for victory after breaking Djokovic to love for a 5-3 lead in the fifth set -- Djokovic's untimely double fault giving the Swiss triple break point in that game.

But when the Swiss great mustered double match point, Djokovic threw caution to the wind, pouncing on a 108 mile per hour Federer serve and belting the return back for a winner.

"If it comes in, it comes in," Djokovic said of his strategy at that point. "It's a risk. Last year, I was in a very similar situation. He was two match points up. I was hitting a forehand as hard as I can.

"You're gambling. If it's out, you lose. If it's in, maybe you have a chance. I got lucky today."

Federer was clearly stung to be derailed by a "lucky shot".

"That's why we all watch sports, isn't it? Because we don't know the outcome and everybody has a chance, and until the very moment it can still turn," he said.

"That's what we love about the sport, but it's also very cruel and tough sometimes. It got me today."

Djokovic saved another match point when a Federer forehand clipped the net cord and went out.

Two games later, Djokovic punctuated two long rallies with forehand winners to break for 6-5 and Federer was finished.

"It was definitely the biggest win of this year, one of the biggest wins of the career under the circumstances," Djokovic said.

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