Juan Martin del Potro was too good for second seed Alexander Zverev as the grand slam winner moved through to the ATP Mexican Open final.
Del Potro – the 2009 US Open champion – was a class above in his 6-4 6-2 victory in Friday's semi-final in Acapulco.
The Argentine star overcame 2016 Mexican Open winner and third seed Dominic Thiem in their blockbuster quarter-final.
And Del Potro was not broken in the final-four showdown, which lasted an hour and a half, as he converted three of his own against the talented German.
del Potro unmatched.@delpotrojuan into second final of 2018. Masters Zverev 6-4 6-2.#AMT2018 pic.twitter.com/8BjAL2XtpQ
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) March 3, 2018
Standing in the way of the sixth seed and glory in Mexico is in-form South African Kevin Anderson.
Anderson stayed red hot with a 6-3 4-6 6-3 win over qualifier Jared Donaldson on Friday.
Seeking back-to-back titles after taking out the New York Open a fortnight ago, fifth seed Anderson improved to 11-2 for the season after outlasting the American.
"It's another opportunity for me," Anderson said. "I'm looking forward to it. I feel like I'm playing great tennis. [It's] just about recovering and resting up right now and being as prepared as possible for tomorrow [Saturday]."
Meanwhile, three-time defending champion Pablo Cuevas kept his quest for a four-peat alive by overcoming Leonardo Mayer 6-2 6-7 (11-13) 7-6 (7-5) at the Brasil Open.
Cuevas – the third seed – won 112 total points in the quarter-final contest as he extended his winning streak to 15 matches in Sao Paulo.
Top seed Albert Ramos-Vinolas, however, lost 6-7 (6-8) 6-4 7-6 (7-3) against Nicolas Jarry.
.@NicoJarry upsets the No.1 seed!
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) March 3, 2018
Makes second semifinal of 2018 defeating Ramos-Vinolas 6-7(6) 6-4 7-6(3).#BrasilOpen2018 pic.twitter.com/IkPKhFLcCa
Italian second seed Fabio Fognini accounted for Guillermo Garcia-Lopez 6-4 6-2, while Horacio Zeballos prevailed 6-7 (3-7) 6-2 6-4 against Rogerio Dutra Silva.
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