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Blockx will play in his first ATP Tour final on Monday (AEST) after securing a 5-7 7-6 (7-1) 7-6 (7-5) victory in two hours and 47 minutes.

The Belgian started the match with a break to love, but neither player could gain a true foothold in a first set that saw seven breaks in serve.

Blockx had taken a 5-4 lead, but Darderi finished the set with a three-game winning streak, eventually converting his third set point.

Darderi then looked set to run away with the contest after racing into a 4-1 lead in the second set, but Blockx dug deep and got the vital break in the ninth game before making light work of the tie-break.

The Italian started the decider with a break that was then cancelled out in the eighth game, though Blockx then had to defend two break points in the next game.

The pair needed another breaker to settle the tie, and after Darderi reeled off the first four points, he looked comfortable even after having his lead cut to 5-3.

Blockx finished the match by winning each of the last four points, though, and he has set up a meeting with Luca Van Assche, who came out on top in an all-French semi-final against Hugo Gaston earlier in the day. 

Van Assche, who stunned No.1 seed Andrey Rublev in the quarter-finals, reached his first ATP Tour final with a 6-4 7-5 victory in one hour and 57 minutes.