Rafael Nadal is two matches away from getting the jump on golden era rivals Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer to become all-time Grand Slam leader as the Australian Open gets down to the last four on Friday, IgbereTV reports.
The 35-year-old Spanish gladiator has Italian power server Matteo Berrettini to overcome to get through to Sunday’s final against second seed Daniil Medvedev or number four Stefanos Tsitsipas in his quest for a 21st major title.
Nadal, seeded sixth and the 2009 winner, 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 has cleared Nadal’s path to the top-half semi-final.
