They represent the past and future of men’s tennis.
Eight-time grand-slam winner Andre Agassi beat Greg Rusedski 6-4, 6-4 on Saturday to reach the final of the Montreal ATP Masters Series, where he will face teenager Rafael Nadal.
The 35-year-old Agassi will be bidding for his third Canadian crown as he takes on top seed Nadal of Spain in Sunday’s final.
Agassi won previously in Montreal in 1992, 1994 and 1995.
Nadal, the reigning French Open champion, moved another step closer to his first career hard-court title by defeating Frenchman Paul-Henri Mathieu 6-4, 7-5 in Saturday’s other semifinal.
Nadal, who won his 15th straight match, was serving for the match at 5-4 in the second set but was broken at love.
But the left-hander broke back in the next game and saved a break point in the final game to improve his ATP-best record to 64-8 this year, including 15-4 on hard courts.
”I was a little bit nervous at the end, but I think is normal,” Nadal said. ”The important thing is that I got the win against a player that has been playing very good. I’m very happy to be in my fourth Masters Series final.”
Nadal, who dropped to his knees and pumped his arms after the victory, has won eight titles this year, tying world number one Roger Federer for the ATP Tour lead, but all have come on clay.
The Spaniard claimed Masters Series titles in Monte Carlo and Rome but lost in a thrilling five-set final to Federer on the hard-court event in Miami.
Mathieu was aiming for his first ATP final since Palermo in 2003.
On Saturday afternoon, Agassi, a three-time champion in Montreal, and Rusedski each posted a 6-3, 6-4 quarterfinal victory to reach the penultimate round.
Steady rain shortened Friday night’s session, pushing the two quarterfinals at the United States Open warm-up event to early on Saturday afternoon.
Agassi bolted to a 6-3 lead over sixth-seeded Argentine Gaston Gaudio before the skies opened on Friday night.
The match was suspended after a delay of 35 minutes.
On Saturday, Agassi got the decisive break in the ninth game of the second set and closed out the match with an ace in the next game.
The 35-year-old Agassi is coming off his 60th career victory in the Mercedes-Benz Cup two weeks ago. It was his first event since returning from a painful back injury.
Earlier on Saturday, Rusedski beat Dominik Hrbaty of Slovakia in a match that did not get under way on Friday. — Sapa-AFP