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BNP Paribas Masters—Paris, France

No. 3 seed Novak Djokovic put an exclamation mark on two great weeks of tennis, easily dismissing No. 2 seed Rafael Nadal 6-2, 6-3 in the semifinals of the Bercy event in Paris on Saturday.

Djokovic, who defeated world No. 1 Roger Federer in three sets to claim the Basel Indoors event last week, took advantage of Nadal's weak serving on the day, breaking the Spaniard in six and eighth games of the opening sets—both at love.

The second set mirrored the first set in many ways, with Djokovic dominating the tempo of the baseline exchanges, striking deep flat groundstrokes.

Nadal, who had exhibited more of a defensive foundation throughout the week, couldn't generate the necessary firepower required to trouble his Serbian opponent.

Winning only 58 percent of his total service points throughout the one hour and 16 minute blowout, Nadal, who leads the Tour in several return of serve statistics, remained quiet on Djokovic's service games, failing to gather a single break point opportunity.

Djokovic, who was a relentless from every part of the court against his Spanish rival, improved his head-to-head deficit against Nadal to 14-6, while winning his Tour-leading 75th match of the season.

Djokovic was ecstatic after his victory, confessing that he couldn't have played any better.

"There's not much to say about today's performance, except it was perfect," said Djokovic, who hit 31 winners.  

"[It was] exactly the way I wanted it.  I have done, tactically-wise, everything that I imagined to do and planned to do before the match.  I was very aggressive.

"[I] took the early control of the match over my opponent, and it paid off.  I was hitting winners from all over the court and really trying to keep that momentum going throughout the whole match.  I didn't give him many chances to come back into the match."

Nadal, who fell to 64-11 on the year, has encountered a variety of upsets as of late, losing to players who strike deeper more penetrating shots.

"He played very well," admitted Nadal.  "He played unbelievable, in my opinion.  I didn't play bad.  That's the truth.  But with this level of Novak's, [it] is very difficult to play at this level, especially [on] this surface.  I finish the tournament playing much better than  [how] I started [it]."

Nadal will now head back to Mallorca, before traveling to London where he will begin preparations for the Tour finale. 

Djokovic, who will be competing in his 10th final of the year, will face athletic Frenchman and crowd favorite Gael Monfils in the final.

Monfils advanced to his first Masters 1000 level final on Saturday, defeating Radek Stepanek 6-4, 5-7, 6-4.

Monfils, who dazzled the hometown crowd throughout the two hour and 41 minute slugfest, nearly lost his momentum in the second set after serving for the match at 5-4.

Stepanek, who remains one of the most determined competitors on the circuit, broke Monfils to even the second set at 5-5, before holding to lead 6-5.

Using a crafty selection of flat backhands and net approaches, Stepanek captured the second set with an overhead smash—converting his second of four break point opportunities. 

With the Parisian crowd gasping at his every stroke, Monfils drew last blood in the ninth game of the final set, breaking Stepanek for the sixth time in the contest.

After Stepanek hit a final forehand long on match point, Monfils pumped his chest with vigor, acknowledging the tremendous crowd support.

With the win, Monfils advanced to his third final of the year and will attempt to win his second title on home soil in the last month, capturing his second career in Metz.

The flexible Frenchman, who improved to 42-18 on the season and 3-1 against Stepanek in career head-to-head meetings, spoke about his delight of reaching the biggest final of his young career.

"I don't feel tired anymore," said Monfils.  "I know tomorrow I'll give my life on the court.  I've been playing more than two hours today and the day before.  It's no longer a physical issue.  It's mental now.  I want to win.  I'm not listening to my body anymore.  I'll give it all."

Monfils' inspiring words will be needed on Sunday, when he takes a 3-0 career head-to-head deficit against his Serbian opponent.

Regardless of his undefeated mark against the Frenchman, Djokovic will not be taking Monfils for granted come Sunday. 

"[Monfils] is one of the players who is very unpredictable," said Djokovic. 

"He can play really, really fast.  And with a big serve, he can do a lot of damage to opponents.  I've seen a couple of matches in this tournament, and I've seen that he's in good shape.  He's moving really fast, he's fit, and he's motivate.  He's going to have big support of the crowd, and that's one of the key facts."

Please check back on Sunday for a complete finals recap from the BNP Paribas Masters in France.

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