Nadal’s quest to topple Djoker and Federer

Second seed Daniil Medvedev and Greek number four Stefanos Tsitsipas will renew their rivalry in a repeat of last year’s Melbourne Park last-four encounter, which was won by the Russian, in a night blockbuster at Melbourne Park.The 35-year-old Spanish gladiator is two wins away from getting the jump on fellow 20-time Grand Slam champions and “big three” rivals Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer in the race to become greatest male player in tennis history.Nadal, seeded sixth and with just one Australian Open crown among his 20 majors, back in 2009, had modest expectations resuming after a three-and-a-half-month lay-off with a chronic foot injury at the end of last season.But a combination of nine-time winner Djokovic’s dramatic deportation on the eve of the tournament over vaccination issues and world number three Alexander Zverev’s shock fourth-round exit cleared Nadal’s path.Nadal has been modifying his game to compensate for a degenerative bone disease in his left foot that threatens to end his remarkable career and faces another physical test against last year’s Wimbledon finalist Berrettini.“Today there are still doubts because the foot, it is an injury we cannot fix... so we need to find a way that the pain is under control to keep playing,” Nadal said.Seventh seed Berrettini, 25, is the first Italian man to play in the Australian Open semi-finals.“Playing with him on Rod Laver Arena in the semi-finals is something that I dreamed about when I was a kid,” he said of facing Nadal.“Now I really want to win this match. I know I can do it.” The two-metre tall (6ft 7in) Berrettini, who possesses a top-spin forehand nearly as heavy as Nadal’s, lost their only meeting in a semi-final at the 2019 US Open in straight sets.Aus Open 2022 – SnapshotcOURTROD LAVER ARENA Day session – From 12:00pm AEDTMixed Doubles • FinalJ. Fourlis WCJ. Kubler WCK. Mladenovic 5I. Dodig 5Day session – Not before 2:30pm AEDTMen’s Singles • semi-finalsM. Berrettini 7R. Nadal 6Night session – From 7:30pm AEDTMen’s Singles • semi-finalsS. Tsitsipas 4D. Medvedev 2GOOD MORNING: Men’s semi finals day and also some Aussies in the mixed doubles finalIga Swiatek said she came up against the fastest balls she has ever faced after being blown off court by the raw power of Danielle Collins to miss out on an Australian Open final Thursday.The Polish seventh seed was overwhelmed by the American 6-4, 6-1 in the last four and said it was tough to know how to deal with her relentless shot-making.“I was prepared for her playing an aggressive game, but I think that was the fastest ball I have ever played against in a match,” she said.“For sure in practices I have hit maybe the same speed, but in matches it’s different because players they don’t want to, you know, take that much risk.“But it seemed for her that it wasn’t even risky because she was playing it with control. So I am impressed and huge respect to her because she’s playing a great game.” Despite the disappointing defeat, Swiatek showed character on her way to the last four and said she had no regrets from her time at Melbourne Park, where she made her first semi-final outside of the French Open that she won in 2020.During her run to the Roland Garros title aged just 17 she did not drop a set, but twice came from a set down in Melbourne -- against Estonian veteran Kaia Kanepi and Romania’s Sorana Cirstea.It is the first time in her short career the Pole has won back-to-back matches after losing the first set, proving her fight is just as formidable as her forehand.She also demonstrated her consistency by making the second week for a sixth consecutive Grand Slam and said the key lesson she took away was that “I don’t have to play perfect tennis to win matches, even on hard courts”.“That’s my best result on hard court besides winning Adelaide. I mean, I don’t know if winning Adelaide is better than the semi-final of an Australian Open,” she said, referring to the Adelaide title she won last year.“So that’s positive, because I always wanted to improve on hard courts. “I like the fact that I won against Sorana and Kaia like mentally and physically, and I gave my heart on court, so that’s great.“I’m pretty happy that I’m able to also play aggressive and be ready on fast surfaces. Maybe I wasn’t today, but usually.” Despite the defeat, Swiatek is projected to move to number four in the world rankings when they are released next weekUpdates to story Via news.com.au — Australia’s leading news site https://www.news.com.au