Roger Federer after beating Rafael Nadal 6-4, 6-1 on Saturday. (AFP)

Shanghai: Roger Federer was at his brilliant best as he dominated second-ranked Rafael Nadal 6-4, 6-1 Saturday to advance to the Masters Cup final.

The top-ranked Swiss star will face No. 6 David Ferrer, who used sparkling defence to down No. 5 Andy Roddick 6-1, 6-3 in the season-ending tournament for the top eight players in the rankings.

Nadal had led 8-5 in head-to-head meetings against Federer and played well early. But defending champion Federer matched him shot for shot, then kicked into high gear while serving at 4-4 in the first set.

Nadal pulled ahead 30-15, then Federer ran off 20 of the next 21 points, including 15 in a row in an 11-minute span.

Looking stunned, Nadal managed to win only three points in the first five games of the second set. He finally held at love to break Federer’s streak of seven games.

Serving at 5-1, Federer hit an overhead winner to set up match point, and Nadal netted a backhand to finish it off in 59 minutes.

Federer, who has won his three matches since losing his opener, also landed 83 per cent of his first serves. He ended up with 26 winners to 16 unforced errors and yielded only 11 points in his nine service games.

It was a disappointing end for the vocal section of flag-waving Spanish fans who were dressed in their red-and-gold national colors and chanted to a trumpet, bongo drum and cymbals as Ferrer beat Roddick, the clear fan favorite in the packed but chilly 15,000-seat arena.

Ferrer, who now has dropped only one set in four matches, was fresh, confident and sharp from the start, while Roddick seemed to be showing the effects of the short 20-hour turnaround from his loss to Federer the night before. Ferrer last played Thursday.

“Today I played very good,” Ferrer said. “Now I want to enjoy this moment.”

After Roddick held serve to start the match, Ferrer ran off six games in a row, with Roddick never managing a game point. Roddick’s serve lost some of its usual zing, and he got a massage on his lower back after getting broken for the second time to trail 4-1. He won only 11 of his 26 service points in the first set.

Ferrer, one of the best serve returners in the game, had plenty to do with that. Nimble and quick at the baseline, his defence was nearly flawless. He ripped winners from both sides on the run, and punished Roddick when he came in, sending groundstrokes past him or at his feet.

Ferrer broke Roddick for the fourth time to pull ahead 4-2 in the second set, aided by a pair of seemingly impossi. Roddick’s last gasp came in the next game when he had triple break point only to see the Spaniard bounce back to hold.

Ferrer showed some nerves while serving for the match, double-faulting at 40-30. But Roddick then sent a forehand long and a serve return into the net to finish it. Ferrer dropped on his back in joy. (AP)