MELBOURNE: A fired-up Rafa Nadal survived a huge scare from big-hitting Czech Tomas Berdych at the Australian Open on Tuesday to prevail 6-7 7-6 6-4 6-3 and set up a mouthwatering semi-final with great rival Roger Federer.
A set down and facing set point in the second, Nadal dug himself out of a cavernous hole then roared to victory after a taxing four-hour tussle under the lights at a frenzied Rod Laver Arena.
A suspect shoulder and creaky knees have been Nadal's biggest worries in a fuss-free run at Melbourne Park, but the energetic Spaniard finished in full flight, bashing winners from all angles and encouraged by his best form in months.
“Semi-finals is a fantastic result for me. Starting the season with semi-finals in the first big tournament of the season is very good news,” Nadal told reporters after celebrating victory with a jumping jig that drew thunderous cheers from the packed stands.
“The level is very positive, much, much better than the end of the season. The character on court, the way to win the points, everything was much more positive, so I'm very happy.”
His last meeting with arch-rival Federer at Melbourne Park was in the 2009 final, when he upset the Swiss in a five-set classic that brought tears to his opponent's eyes.
Federer earlier looked in imperious form in his quarter-final thrashing of Juan Martin Del Potro, as he exacted partial revenge for his upset by the Argentine at the 2009 US Open final.
With Novak Djokovic number one, Nadal and Federer meet each other in a grand slam semi-final for the first time since 2005.
“The ranking is important, but when we talk about a player who won 16 grand slams and I won 10 and we played a lot of matches between each other and all in very important moments for our careers and very high moments ... so the match is special,” Nadal said.
“All the matches against him are special and will be special even if we are (ranked) 20 against 25.”
For almost two sets on Tuesday, it appeared the main event would be denied as towering Berdych's monster serve and vicious forehand proved an almighty headache for the 25-year-old Mallorcan.
Embarrassed by Nadal in a straight-sets thrashing for the 2010 Wimbledon title, Berdych was on the front foot from the outset as he pushed the Spaniard into a tense tiebreak.
He calmly sealed the set with an ace after Nadal lost his composure, having been denied the chance to challenge a line-call for taking too long to appeal.
Nadal came out firing in the second set to charge to a 3-1 lead before again being reeled in for a tiebreak.
Berdych raised the stakes by prising a set point at 6-5, but Nadal saved it after a frantic rally.
The Czech's disappointment carried on with two unforced errors that gifted the set, and with the smell of blood in the air, Nadal began attacking Berdych's serve with abandon.
Reward came with a decisive break at 2-2 and he steamed ahead to close out the set with an overhead smash before going on to notch his 10th straight win over the Czech.
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