Rafa Nadal will soon be back as the tennis world number one as he has reached the final of the China Open. It will be the first time the Spaniard has held the ranking since July 2011 and he will replace current number one Novak Djokovic.

Nadal’s opponent Tomas Berdych retired during the first set of their semi-final, with the Czech player complaining of back pain. Nadal was leading 4-2, having broken Berdych’s serve in the fifth game of the set.

Nadal faces either Djokovic or Richard Gasquest in the final.

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