Nadal earns Djokovic final rematch; Azarenka beats Sharapova to title

(CNN) -- World No. 1 Rafael Nadal will have the chance to avenge his Indian Wells final defeat by in-form Novak Djokovic on Sunday after joining the Serbian in reaching his second successive Masters Series title match.
The Spaniard, twice a runner-up in the Florida hard-court event, crushed longtime rival Roger Federer 6-3 6-2 in Friday's second semifinal -- the first time they had met at the last-four stage of a tournament since 2005.
The 24-year-old was beaten in three sets by Djokovic in the Californian desert two weeks ago, and must end the world No. 2's 23-match unbeaten run this year if he is to avoid a hat-trick of final defeats following losses to Federer in 2005 and Nikolay Davydenko three years ago.
"I felt I had a chance in Indian Wells," Nadal told the ATP Tour website. "I lost a little bit the focus and the rhythm in the second set, the intensity of the legs and of the shots, so I started to play a little bit more defensive.
Djokovic extends winning streak to reach Miami final
It's unofficially the fifth grand slam, and the best players in the world are playing, which makes my success here even bigger
--Novak Djokovic
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"Against a player like Novak, it's impossible to win the match playing like this."
Nadal ended Federer's hopes of a third Miami success, with the 16-time grand slam champion paying the price for uncharacteristic errors.
"When I did have chances, I played poorly and he came up with some good stuff. It was an off night for me, unfortunately," Federer said.
Australian Open champion Djokovic is looking to become the first player since Federer to achieve the Indian Wells-Miami double in one season, a feat the Swiss achieved in 2005 and 2006.
Djokovic was beaten in the second round here last year, a disappointing result after being runner-up in 2009 and the champion in 2007.
"Next to Indian Wells, this is my most successful Masters 1000 event," the 23-year-old told the tournament's official website after dispatching new American No. 1 Mardy Fish in straight sets in the opening semifinal.
"It's unofficially the fifth grand slam, and the best players in the world are playing, which makes my success here even bigger."
Nadal beat Djokovic twice in hard-court events last year, including the U.S. Open final when he completed a career grand slam, but has an overall record of 5-8 against him on the surface.
Djokovic's Indian Wells triumph was his first in five finals against Nadal.
Meanwhile, Victoria Azarenka has won the Miami women's event for the second time after beating former No. 1 Maria Sharapova in Saturday's final.
The 21-year-old eighth seed from Belarus, who eliminated world No. 2 Kim Clijsters in the semifinals, followed up her 2009 triumph by defeating the Florida-based Russian 6-1 6-4 in one hour and 46 minutes.
Sharapova, also the runner-up in 2005 and 2006, will nevertheless return to the top-10 for the first time in two years when the new rankings are released next week.
"It's a little bit too late to pick up the pace when you're down a set and 4-0," Sharapova told reporters. "I wish I picked it up earlier, obviously. She did many things better than I did today."

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