Nadal routs Federer to reach third Melbourne Final

Saturday, 25 January 2014 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

MELBOURNE (Reuters): A ruthless Rafa Nadal crushed his great rival Roger Federer 7-6(4) 6-3 6-3 on Friday in an awesome display of raw power and precision to reach his third Australian Open final. On a breezy night at Rod Laver Arena, the 2009 champion notched his sixth straight win in grand slams over the Swiss, stunning his opponent with a masterclass of clean hitting to book a title-decider with Stanislas Wawrinka. Dominating Federer in the first set tiebreak, the Spaniard broke twice to charge through the second, and captured the decisive break in the third at 3-3 when his opponent blasted into the net-cord and the deflection sailed long. Hitting winners from all corners, Nadal raised two match-points as Federer served to stay in the match and sealed it on the second when the shell-shocked Swiss shanked a forehand long. Nadal punched his left fist into the night sky and roared in triumph while a demoralised Federer gave a cursory wave before trudging to the exit. “I think tonight I played my best match of the tournament, so I’m very happy for that,” top seed Nadal, who missed last year’s tournament through illness, said in a courtside interview. “After missing last year, for me it’s really emotional to be back on this court, in Rod Laver. “I never thought about having 14 (slams), the only thing I can swear is that I’m going to try my best,” the 13-times grand slam champion said of his prospects for the final. The lop-sided result will re-fuel the debate as to the greatest player of all time, with Nadal extending his head-to-head dominance over Federer to 23-10, and thrashing him on a hardcourt, the most democratic of surfaces. A runaway victory seemed an absurd notion early, as the pair parried and probed in the opening games.Nadal was impenetrable on serve and demanded Federer meet him in a tiebreak where the Swiss promptly stumbled. Throwing his opponent from side to side, the Spaniard played it completely on his terms, roaring to a 5-1 lead and closing the set out when Federer sent an increasingly shaky backhand sailing past the baseline.

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