MELBOURNE, Australia – A dominating win by Roger Federer in his 1,000th career match and a more difficult workout for Rafael Nadal set up a rare Grand Slam marquee semifinal between the former top-ranked players.
Four-time Australian Open champion Federer advanced to his ninth straight semifinal at Melbourne Park with a 6-4, 6-3, 6-2 quarterfinal win Tuesday over Juan Martin del Potro, the man who beat him for the U.S. Open title in 2009.
Federer’s 1,000th match was similar to most in his career — no-nonsense, dominating from the start and hitting some incredible shots.
“It’s a lot of matches and a lot tennis,” said Federer, a record 16-time Grand Slam champion. “Either I have been around for a long time or I’m extremely fit. You decide which way you want to describe it. But I’m happy.”
In an often tempestuous night match at Rod Laver Arena, Nadal advanced with a tough 6-7 (5), 7-6 (6), 6-4, 6-3 win over Tomas Berdych.
“Happy with how I finished match physically, I was able to keep running with high intensity,” Nadal said.
Federer and Nadal — they were ranked 1-2 for many years — have been on opposite halves of the draw since the 2005 French Open. That
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