Rafael Nadal, Shanghai Masters
Tennis - Shanghai Masters tennis tournament - Shanghai, China - October 12, 2017 - Rafael Nadal of Spain celebrates his win against Fabio Fognini of Italy. Reuters / Aly Song

World No. 1 Rafael Nadal outlasted sixth seed Marin Cilic 7-5, 7-6 (7-3), to qualify for finals of the Shanghai Masters on Sunday. A week after claiming victory in the China Open at Beijing, Nadal is now a win away from notching up a record 31 carer ATP Masters 1000 titles; he currently shares the honour with Novak Djokovic.

The Spaniard overcame a tough challenge from Cilic, the 2014 US Open winner, to reach his 111th final and 10th of the year. Nadal also extended his winning streak to 16 matches and improved his overall 2017 record to 65 wins and 9 losses. The season also marks the fifth time in Nadal's career when he has contested in a minimum of 10 title matches, starting with the 2017 Australian Open at Melbourne Park.

Rafael Nadal set to break record for most ATP Masters 1000 titles

Nadal, with 871 career wins, also moved past American legend Andre Agassi to sixth place on the Open Era wins list. He will face either arch rival Roger Federer or big-serving Argentine Juan Martin del Potro in Sunday's final. Earlier in the summer, Nadal had defeated del Petro at the U.S. Open final to increase his career Grand Slam tally to 16.

As aptly explained by the ATP World Tour website, Nadal had Cilic on the back foot after earning an early break of serve. "Cilic's serve came under fire immediately and he would be forced to save six break points in his opening two service games. The fourth seed would survive the onslaught, but eventually conceded the critical break with the set on the line. Cilic squandered a trio of set points at 5-all and Nadal capitalised in the very next game, seizing the initial break and closing out the opener after 67 minutes."

With a victory on Sunday, Rafael Nadal officially end the season as the World No. 1, regardless of the outcome at next month's Nitto ATP Finals in London. It will mark the fourth occasion in his career when he would end the year as the World No. 1 - after 2008, 2010 and 2013. Tennis fans the world over are hoping for a Rafael Nadal vs Roger Federer showdown in Sunday's final. Nadal is chasing his maiden Shanghai Masters title.