The joint ATP Masters 1000 and WTA Premier Mandatory event in Madrid reaches its twin climaxes today. Nick Nemeroff opens the Magic Box one last time.

Maria Sharapova vs. Simona Halep

Sharapova will be glad not to see Serena Williams standing across the net from her as she attempts to take the third Premier Mandatory event of the WTA season. Sharapova has won all eight clay-court finals she has played against opponents not named Serena Williams.

Her adversary, Simona Halep, will be seeking her first Premier Mandatory title and her third career title on clay. Sharapova and Halep met at Indian Wells and Beijing in 2012, both matches won by the Russian in straight sets.

These two women have established themselves as threats on hard courts, grass courts, and clay courts. In 2013, Halep won six titles spanning all three surfaces. Over her career, Sharapova has won at least one Grand Slam on each surface. That said, Sharapova has a lot more familiarity with contesting finals at the highest levels of the game, which should give her a significant mental edge at the outset. Halep has proven herself capable of handling any challenge thrown her way, but it would not be surprising if the 22-year-old Romanian deals with nerves throughout the course of this match.

After her close call with Li Na in the quarterfinals, Sharapova took care of business against Agnieszka Radwanska in the semifinals, conceding only five games en route to victory. Halep fought back from a set down against Petra Kvitova in the semifinals to obtain her spot in Sunday’s final.

The only scenario where Halep would have a strong shot at winning is if Sharapova comes out consistently misfiring with her serve and baseline weapons. Halep’s elongated groundstrokes are not well designed to withstand the depth and pace produced by Sharapova’s groundstrokes. Halep will need to ensure that Sharapova plays as few shots as possible within her strike zone. She can achieve this by adding increased height and spin to her shots, providing Sharapova with a steady dosage of balls above waist level.

Halep doesn’t possess a particularly powerful serve, and Sharapova owns one of the most devastating returns in the game. If Halep doesn’t place her serve effectively, she will struggle to hold serve. Sharapova’s experience and commanding force from the back of the court should allow her to blow through any Halep resistance.

Prediction: Sharapova in two sets

Rafael Nadal vs. Kei Nishikori

Nishikori’s 14-match winning streak will be put to the ultimate test on Sunday evening in Madrid as the newest member of the ATP top 10 takes his shot at world No. 1 Rafael Nadal. This match marks Nishikori’s first Masters Series 1000 final. By contrast, Nadal will be seeking his 27th career Masters Series 1000 crown.

Nishikori is 0-6 lifetime against Nadal, having won only a single set against the Spaniard. In addition, Nishikori has lost to Nadal on grass, clay, and hard courts. These two most recently met in the fourth round of this year’s Australian Open. Nadal won this match 7-6 7-5 7-6, which is about as close as a straight-sets match gets. Nishikori pushed Nadal to the brink in each set but was unable to come up with the goods when it really counted.

Nadal and Nishikori enter Sunday’s final having played entirely different semifinals. Nadal took care of Roberto Bautista-Agut 6-3 6-4 in one hour and 42 minutes. Nishikori needed nearly three hours and 10 match points, including nine in the final game of the match, to drive the dagger in David Ferrer.

Nishikori will have about 21 hours to recover, and he’ll need each and every second to replenish himself and restore his body and mind to their peak form. The Japanese No. 1 and the newest member of the ATP top 10 also will have to treat the lower back problems that required him to receive medical attention throughout his match with Ferrer.

If Nishikori is able to perform at the level that has seen him through his last 14 matches, Nadal is going to have a serious challenge on his hands. Nishikori has developed one of the most fundamentally sound games in all of tennis. He can punish his opponents with ruthless offense while defending with exceptional speed. Against Nadal, Nishikori’s lethal double-handed backhand will have to be spot-on to resist Nadal’s cross-court forehand. His speed also will be tested, for Nadal will attempt to keep him running as much as possible.

Look for Nadal to stretch Nishikori on the ad-side, so he can continue to execute his nearly indefensible forehand down the line. The King of Clay has looked a lot more like his usual self this week, and with Nishikori coming off an extremely exhausting semifinal, all signs point to yet another Nadal victory in Madrid.

Prediction: Nadal in two sets