Andy Murray will face Fernando Verdasco in the final of the Dubai Duty Free Championships following a straight-sets victory over Lucas Pouille.

The world number one stumbled through the opening set before producing a dominant display in the second to secure a 7-5 6-1 success over the Frenchman.

Murray initially showed no ill-effects of Thursday's gruelling quarter-final victory over Philipp Kohlschreiber as he won the opening three games but world No.15 Pouille hit back, breaking the Scot twice as he won the next four.

The Briton then reasserted his authority by winning four of the next five games to wrap up the opening set in an hour and eight minutes.

Pouille's disappointment at falling short in the first set seemed to break his resistance and Murray, a runner-up at the tournament in 2012, cruised through the second in just 27 minutes.

Spaniard Verdasco awaits the Scot in Saturday's final after he beat Holland's Robin Haase in Friday's first semi-final.

Murray believes he cannot allow Fernando Verdasco to dictate play when the pair meet in the final of the Dubai Duty Free Championships.

The world number one, who is looking to secure his first title of the season, has a superb record against the Spaniard, winning 12 of their previous 13 meetings.

Despite the head-to-head statistics, Murray is wary of the threat posed by the world number 35 ahead of Saturday's match.

"Obviously this week he's had some good wins," the Scot told the ATP World Tour website. "I think where the balls are fairly heavy here on a quick court, he can generate a lot of power, he can control the ball.

"And when he's dictating the points, he's one of the best in the world at doing that."

Murray, whose only defeat against Verdasco came at the 2009 Australian Open, admits to being impressed by the way his opponent has begun the new season.

The Madrid-born 33-year-old has so far suffered twice at the hands of world number two Novak Djokovic in 2017, losing to the Serbian in the semi-finals of the Qatar Open in Doha before being beaten in the Australian Open first round.

"He's had a pretty good start to the year," Murray added.

"Obviously tough draw in Australia (Djokovic in the first round), but he played well in Doha. (He) Had the match points against Novak. Couldn't quite get that one done, but I think he played very well there."

Murray, a runner-up in Dubai in 2012, secured his final place with a 7-5 6-1 success over seventh seed Lucas Pouille.

The 29-year-old Scot was forced to fight for the first set against the Frenchman before producing a dominant display in the second.

He felt his gruelling quarter-final victory over Philipp Kohlschreiber had an impact on his performance and the quality of the match.

"It was tough," he added. "I don't think it was the best match but there was some good stuff in there.

"I think potentially matches yesterday had something to do with that because I think sometimes if your legs are a little bit tired, that the serve is one of the first things that goes.

"As the match went on, I started serving a bit better and that helped me. The first set was very important to win after how the matches went yesterday."

Verdasco booked his place in the last two by beating Holland's Robin Haase in Friday's first semi-final.