Haas faces Kafelnikov in final

Kafelnikov is the favourite for gold

Russia's Yevgeny Kafelnikov will take on German Tommy Haas in the Olympics men's tennis final.

Unseeded Haas, who considered skipping the Sydney Games because of poor form and injuries, sealed his place with a 6-3 6-2 win over Swiss Roger Federer in just 75 minutes.

And in the other semi-final fifth-seeded Kafelnikov claimed a 6-4 6-4 win over Arnaud di Pasquale of France.

The two men are guaranteed at least a silver medal when they battle it out on September 28. Federer and di Pasquale will contest the bronze medal match.

Kafelnikov, who was favourite in the last-four stage as the only seed left in the torunament, got crucial breaks on di Pasquale's serve in the seventh game of each set and won in one hour 18 minutes.

Haas took an easy win in his semi-final

Haas, 22, is aiming to become the first German to win an Olympic men's singles title.

His thoughts about opting out of the event came after hip and back injuries kept him out of action for most of the summer and he crashed to a second-round loss to compatriot Rainer Schuttler at the US Open.

"I was thinking about not coming here because I was totally out of shape," Haas said. "To play at the Olympics you need to be 100% fit.

"I hurt my back again doing weights when I arrived here but I took a few days off, then worked hard and suddenly I found my rhythm.

"The way I'm playing in this tournament is probably my best performance of the whole year."

Interrupted

Haas has already beaten two seeded players: South African 14th-seed Wayne Ferreira and eighth-seeded Spaniard Alex Corretja.

His match with Federer was delayed for over three hours by rain and was twice briefly interrupted by showers when it finally got under way.

The German took control from 3-3 in the first set, winning five straight games and establishing a stranglehold Federer was never able to break.

"So far, so good," Haas said. "It is good to know you already have a medal in your pocket."