French Open: Ruthless Nadal crushes Del Potro to reach final

Spain's Rafael Nadal in action during his semifinal match against Argentina's Juan Martin del Potro. Reuters

Paris: Ruthless Rafael Nadal punished Juan Martin del Potro for missed opportunities as he reached his 11th French Open final with a 6-4, 6-1, 6-2 victory on Friday.

Argentine Del Potro often had Nadal in trouble in a ferocious first set but paid heavily for failing to convert any of the six break points that came his way at 1-1 and 4-4.

Ten-times champion Nadal then pounced in the 10th game to take the opening set and fifth seed Del Potro's challenged evaporated in the Court Philippe Chatrier sunshine.

Nadal took a stranglehold on the match and powered on to victory in two hours 14 minutes to set up a final against Austria's seventh seed Dominic Thiem.

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