Kei Nishikori edged closer to his first tournament win in two years - and a place in the ATP Finals - after beating Mikhail Kukushkin at the Vienna Open on Saturday.

The Japanese star triumphed 6-4 6-3 to improve his record against the Kazakh to 8-0.

Should he beat Kevin Anderson in Sunday's final it would be his first trophy success since Memphis in 2016 while it would also move him within 125 points of eighth spot in the race to London.

Kukushkin battled hard in the Austrian capital, but was broken when serving to stay in the first set and Nishikori maintained the momentum by breaking again at the start of the second.

The second semi-final was a much closer affair with Anderson edging out Fernando Verdasco 6-3 3-6 6-4.

The South African will also have London on his mind as he chases his second ATP crown of the year. With a win he will become the sixth man to secure his place at the O2.