Rafael Nadal and Kei Nishikori can set up a thrilling final at the Barcelona Open

Rafael Nadal and Kei Nishikori can set-up a mouthwatering final at the Barcelona Open if they come through Saturday's semi-finals.

Two-time defending champion Nishikori will firstly face Benoit Paire, while top seed Nadal plays in the other semi-final against Philipp Kohlschreiber.

Nadal is targeting a second successive trophy after winning last week's Monte Carlo Masters and he demonstrated his battling qualities in a 6-2 7-6 win over Fabio Fognini in the quarter-finals.

Live ATP Tennis

He has won 12 of his 13 previous matches against Kohlschreiber, but the pair have not shared a court since Nadal's straight sets win over the German in Beijing, back in 2013.

Nishikori is trying to complete a hat trick of title wins at the clay court tournament and he ruthlessly sealed a 7-5 6-0 win over Alexandr Dolgopolov in the quarter-finals.

But Nishikori is fully aware of the threat posed by Paire, who has beaten the Japanese player in their last two matches.

Paire was just a few points away from defeating Andy Murray in Monte Carlo before the Brit battled back to claim victory.

And Nishikori has suffered a semi-final loss to Paire before, slipping to a three set defeat against the Frenchman in Tokyo last year.

You can watch today's semi-final matches at the Barcelona Open from 12.30pm on Sky Sports 5.