MADRID (AP) Novak Djokovic defeated Dominic Thiem 7-6 (2), 7-6 (4) to reach the Madrid Open final for the third time. Djokovic outplayed Thiem in both tiebreakers, converting on his first match point to set up a final against either Rafael Nadal or Stefanos Tsitsipas, who play later Saturday. It will be the second final of the season for the top-ranked Djokovic, who began the year by winning the Australian Open. A victory on Sunday will give Djokovic his 33rd Masters 1000 title, tying Nadal for most all time. Djokovic, who won in Madrid in 2011 and 2016, had played only four sets in the Spanish capital this week prior to the semifinal. He didn't play his quarterfinal match because Marin Cilic withdrew with food poisoning. The fifth-seeded Thiem had won two straight against Djokovic and was trying to make his third straight Madrid final following losses to Nadal in 2017 and Alexander Zverev in 2018. The Austrian was also trying to become the first player to win three titles this season, adding to triumphs in Indian Wells and Barcelona. --- More AP tennis coverage: https://apnews.com/apf-Tennis and https://twitter.com/AP-Sports --- Tales Azzoni on Twitter: http://twitter.com/tazzoni<doc-sep>MADRID — A year ago, Stefanos Tsitsipas was still a teenager and still playing in the qualifying tournaments of some of the most prestigious events on clay. But he has come a long way in a short time, often a mark of tennis greatness. Late Saturday night with the crowd and the odds very much against him, Tsitsipas reaffirmed his rapid rise by surprising Rafael Nadal, the most successful clay-court player in history. His 6-4, 2-6, 6-3 victory over Nadal in the semifinals of the Madrid Open earned Tsitsipas a spot in Sunday’s final against Novak Djokovic, the world’s top-ranked player. In the women’s final, Kiki Bertens won the biggest singles title of her career by defeating Simona Halep, 6-4, 6-4. A victory would have allowed the third-ranked Halep to return to No. 1 next week, displacing Naomi Osaka. Instead Bertens — with her improved serve, defense and variety — will reach a ranking milestone.<doc-sep>Quality Sport Images/Getty Images Kiki Bertens beat Simona Halep in straight sets on Saturday to win the women's title at the 2019 Madrid Open. In the men's draw top seed Novak Djokovic will take on Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final after both men came through their semi-final contests on Saturday. The Serb edged two tiebreaks to see off Dominic Thiem in a tough encounter, while Tsitsipas ended Rafael Nadal's hopes in a three-set thriller. The two players go on to meet in the final on Sunday at 5:30 p.m. BST/12:30 p.m. ET. The full schedule is available from the Madrid Open's official website. Saturday's Results (7) Kiki Bertens bt. (3) Simona Halep 6-4, 6-4 (1) Novak Djokovic bt. (5) Dominic Thiem: 7-6 (2), 7-6 (4) (8) Stefanos Tsitsipas bt. (2) Rafael Nadal: 6-2, 2-6, 6-3 Video Play Button Videos you might like Bertens vs. Halep Bertens won the biggest title of her career so far in the Spanish capital on Saturday. Her victory over Halep also means the Romanian misses the chance to overtake world No. 1 Naomi Osaka in the rankings. Both players struggled to hold serve in the opening set, with Bertens breaking Halep five times on her way to winning the opener 6-4: An early break followed for Bertens at the start of the second as she went on to complete a deserved win over the two-time champion: Halep will still head into the French Open as one of the favourites despite her defeat, but Bertens has also shown she will also be in contention in Paris. Djokovic vs. Thiem Djokovic reached the final of the Madrid Open for the third time in his career, but he had to be at his best to see off a determined Thiem. The Austrian took an early break in the opening set to lead 2-1 when Djokovic netted a forehand, only to see the top seed break back and level matters at 3-3. Thiem had chances to break again at 4-4 but could not convert, as Djokovic went on to claim the first set on the tiebreak in 65 minutes with some impressive defensive play: Thiem went on the attack at the start of the second and earned break points in Djokovic's first two service games but could not make them count. Meanwhile, the Serb earned a time violation which did not appear to impress the crowd, as noted by Metro's George Bellshaw: Thiem finally managed to make the breakthrough at 4-2, but Djokovic hit straight back and then broke again to lead 6-5 and serve for the match. However, the top seed wobbled with victory in sight and could not serve out the victory, allowing Thiem to force another tiebreak. Yet Djokovic managed to regroup quickly and secured his place in the final after two hours and 24 minutes: Christopher Clarey at the New York Times was impressed with his win: The victory ends a run of two straight defeats for Djokovic against Thiem, and he looks to be in great form ahead of the start of the 2019 French Open. Nadal vs. Tsitsipas Tsitsipas got off to a great start against Nadal in windy conditions in Madrid, breaking the second seed in the first game of an opening set that lasted a full six minutes. His lead did not last long as Nadal responded immediately, breaking back to love to make it 1-1 in a strong start to the match from both players. Breaks of serve became a feature of the opening set, as noted by Bellshaw: Yet it was Tsitsipas who managed to hold his nerve and his serve to clinch the opener 6-4 and take a set off Nadal for the first time in his career: Nadal hit back in the second set to send the match into a decider despite Tsitsipas continuing to impress: The Spaniard looked far stronger on serve and began to dominate from the back of the court. He broke to move 4-2 ahead, held to love and then broke Tsitsipas again to take the second set: Nadal's momentum continued at the start of the third as he carved out two break points. However, Tsitsipas produced two big saves to secure a crucial hold and make it 1-1. The Greek then went on to win two break points of his own after an epic 22-shot rally: Yet again Nadal fought them off to hold serve and go 2-1 up, but he was made to pay on his next service game as Tsitsipas gained a decisive break at 3-2. The 20-year-old was then forced to work extremely hard to hold serve: Tsitsipas then produced two brilliant backhand winners to produce another break point, and he converted when Nadal made a mess of a volley to move within a game of victory. Nadal did manage to pull one break back and make Tsitsipas work hard for the win, saving three match points before eventually beating beaten. It is an impressive victory for Tsitsipas who heads into his second ATP Masters 1000 final, while Nadal has now tasted defeat in the semi-finals of all three clay court tournaments he has played in so far in 2019.<doc-sep>MADRID (Reuters) - Stefanos Tsitsipas pulled off one of the biggest wins of his short but remarkable career by beating Rafael Nadal 6-4 2-6 6-3 on Spanish soil on Saturday to book his place in the Madrid Open final against world number one Novak Djokovic. Tsitsipas, 20, had never won a set in his previous three meetings against claycourt specialist and 11-times French Open champion Nadal, but the Greek drew first blood by saving a break point to hold in the 10th game and take the first set. He broke Nadal six times in the epic three-setter played late into the Madrid night, lasting two hours and 34 minutes, while saving 11 of the 16 break points he conceded to his opponent. Before Nadal met Tsitsipas, he had won 26 of 27 service games in this year's Madrid Open, and the Spaniard had breezed past the youngster in the Barcelona Open final last season and this year's Australian Open semi-finals. Nadal won the second set and looked to have the physical edge over his opponent, who has also been playing doubles in Madrid. But Tsitsipas, the Next Gen ATP finals champion, came back stronger in the decider with impressive court coverage and broke Nadal to take a 5-2 lead although he could not immediately serve out for the match. He earned repeated match points in the next game when Nadal was serving and after the Spaniard had dug deep to save three of them he could only find the net on the fourth. Tsitsipas dropped his racket and put his hands to his face to savor his first victory over the titan of claycourt tennis, completing a clean sweep of wins over Djokovic, Nadal and Roger Federer in less than 10 months. "UNBELIEVABLE FEELING" Nadal, meanwhile, was left reflecting on a third straight semi-final exit on clay after losing to Fabio Fognini in the Monte Carlo Masters and Dominic Thiem in the Barcelona Open. "It means the world, it's really nice to be able to play this way, it's an unbelievable feeling," Tsitsipas told reporters. "I had to show mental discipline and being tough and decisive in those crucial moments was key, I had to take all opportunities because Rafa is a fighter, he doesn't give you many points." Djokovic reached the final after seeing off last year's runner-up Dominic Thiem 7-6(2) 7-6(4) in a grueling, high-quality match lasting two hours 22 minutes. Tsitsipas beat Djokovic in the Rogers Cup in Toronto and was looking forward to another match with the Serbian. "I'll have to be mentally prepared for Djokovic, I'm sure he wants the title as badly as me," he added. Djokovic, winner in Madrid in 2011 and 2016, was fully rested after his quarter-final opponent Marin Cilic had withdrawn because of food poisoning, while Thiem had to dig deep to beat Roger Federer in a grueling three-setter. Thiem, who won the Barcelona Open last month and was on an eight-match winning streak, struck an early blow by breaking Djokovic in the fourth game but the Serbian responded by winning the next three games and saved two break points in the eighth. The Serbian won the first tiebreak comfortably after poor shot selections from Thiem but was in trouble in the second set when he trailed 4-2. He immediately broke back and had the chance to serve for the match at 6-5 but squandered the opportunity with a double fault. Yet once again Djokovic had the edge in the tiebreak, earning three match points and taking the first as Thiem smashed a baseline backhand well out, booking his place in a first final since winning the Australian Open. (Reporting by Richard Martin,; Editing by Ian Chadband and Ed Osmond)<doc-sep>
MADRID — Novak Djokovic defeated Dominic Thiem 7-6 (2), 7-6 (4) Saturday to reach the Madrid Open final for the third time. Djokovic outplayed Thiem in both tiebreakers at the Magic Box center court, converting on his first match point to set up a final against either Rafael Nadal or Stefanos Tsitsipas, who play later Saturday. It will be the second final of the season for the top-ranked Djokovic, who began the year by winning the Australian Open. A victory on Sunday will give Djokovic his 33rd Masters 1000 title, tying Nadal for most all time. Djokovic, who won in Madrid in 2011 and 2016, had played only four sets in the Spanish capital this week ahead of the semifinals. He didn't play his quarterfinal match because Marin Cilic withdrew with food poisoning. The fifth-seeded Thiem, who beat Roger Federer in the quarterfinals, had won two straight against Djokovic and was trying to make his third straight Madrid final following losses to Nadal in 2017 and Alexander Zverev in 2018. The Austrian was also attempting to become the first player to win three titles this season, adding to triumphs in Indian Wells and Barcelona. ''Dominic is one of the best tennis players in the world at this moment, especially on this surface, so this was a very big win for me,'' Djokovic said. ''I thought he was the favorite coming into this match because of his win in Barcelona and the way he played winning against Roger yesterday.'' Thiem got off to a good start by breaking Djokovic in the third game of the match, but the Serb quickly got back on serve and then cruised in the opening tiebreaker, dropping only two points. Thiem converted one of his many break opportunities to go 4-2 ahead in the second set, but again Djokovic quickly recovered, breaking back in the following game. The two exchanged two more breaks late in the set, and Djokovic eventually prevailed in the deciding tiebreaker. ''I was still kind of trying to find my best game on clay,'' Djokovic said. ''These are exactly the matches that I need. I'm very, very pleased with this win.'' In the women's final Saturday, two-time Madrid champion Simona Halep takes on Kiki Bertens, last year's runner-up in the Spanish capital.