Djokovic to face Shapovalov in Paris after Nadal pulls out

World number one Novak Djokovic will play Denis Shapovalov in the Paris Masters final after Rafael Nadal withdrew because of injury.

Second seed Nadal, yet to win the Paris title, withdrew before the start of his semi-final with 20-year-old Shapovalov.

Djokovic earlier beat Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria 7-6 (7-5) 6-4.

The 32-year-old four-time champion, beaten in last year’s final by Karen Khachanov, took an hour and 38 minutes to secure victory.

It was his ninth win in 10 meetings with world number 27 Dimitrov, who won the last of his eight titles in 2017.

Canadian Shapovalov, ranked 28th in the world, sealed his first ATP title last month with victory in the indoor Stockholm Open.