Berdych, Nadal to clash in Wimbledon final

Spain's Rafael Nadal reached his fourth Wimbledon final with a 6-4, 7-6, 6-4 win over Britain's Andy Murray on Friday.

The second seed, who won the title in 2008 but missed the tournament last year through injury, will face Czech Tomas Berdych in Sunday's final after the 12th seed overcame Serbia's Novak Djokovic 6-3, 7-6, 6-3.

Nadal took the first set with a single break when Murray sent a crosscourt forehand wide leaving the Scot banging his fist against his side in frustration.

In an enthralling second set, Murray had set point on his serve at 6-5 in the tiebreak but Nadal saved it with a fantastic drop volley before extending his match lead.

Murray started brightly in the third set, breaking Nadal to love to the delight of the partisan Centre Court crowd but their joy did not last long as Nadal broke back in the eighth game and broke again to seal victory when Murray lashed a volley long.

Earlier, Berdych became the first Czech to reach the men's final at Wimbledon since Ivan Lendl in 1987.

The 12th seed reached his first Grand Slam final with a murderous display of hitting from the back of the court against the third seed, who received a code violation for racket abuse after a show of frustration when losing the second set.

"The feeling is amazing, to reach another victory over another great player, Novak Djokovic, in straight sets, it's amazing," the giant Czech, who beat Roger Federer in the quarter-finals, told a courtside interviewer.

"I think (for) every young kid who first time hits the ball, this is the dream to be in the final of any Grand Slam. And if you can do it at Wimbledon it's amazing. It's definitely the biggest tournament for me. It couldn't be better."

Berdych took the opener in 33 minutes with a single break and served for the second at 6-5, but Djokovic revived his chances with a break of his own to take it to a tiebreak.

Djokovic's hopes of a comeback were effectively dashed when he double-faulted to lose the tiebreak 11-9 after Berdych had let slip a 6-2 lead.

Berdych broke for a 5-3 in the third after another double fault from the Serb, and sealed the victory in the next game when a service return flew wide off Djokovic's racket after two hours and 18 minutes.

The 24-year-old smiled and clenched his fist towards his entourage in celebration.