Roddick, Lopez reach Dubai finals

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, March 7 (UPI) -- Andy Roddick Friday defeated his second top three-ranked player in two days in winning a berth in the finals of the $1.4 million Dubai Tennis Championships.

One day after he ousted world No. 2 Rafael Nadal, Roddick turned in a straight-set win over No. 3-rated Novak Djokovic. He will meet unseeded Feliciano Lopez in Saturday's title match.

Roddick, again riding his big serve, ousted Djokovic 7-6 (7-5), 6-3 in 89 minutes. He had 14 aces and his serve wasn't broken Friday. Roddick managed one service break of Djokovic.

Lopez went three sets before winding up a 6-4, 4-6, 7-5 upset of fifth-seeded Nikolay Davydenko in Friday's semifinals. In addition to the win over Davydenko, Lopez beat world No. 4 David Ferrer in the quarterfinals.

Lopez, ranked No. 41, will be looking for his second career ATP title on Saturday while Roddick has 24 championships to his credit. Roddick, ranked sixth in the world, is 3-0 lifetime against Lopez, taking all three matches in straight sets.