Nadal sets up dream Roger Federer semi

MELBOURNE – Rafael Nadal battled back to oust Tomas Berdych in four sets yesterday and set up a mouth-watering Australian Open semi-final with long-time rival Roger Federer.

In a repeat of the 2010 Wimbledon final won by Nadal, the Spanish second seed struggled to impose himself early against Berdych, losing the first set, but recovered to win 6-7 (5/7), 7-6 (8/6), 6-4, 6-3 in 4hrs 16min.’I tried my best in every moment,’ said Nadal. ‘He played very well during almost the whole match.’The semi-final will be a repeat of the epic Nadal-Federer title match at the 2009 Australian Open, won by Nadal, which the Spaniard described as ‘one of those memories that will always be in my mind.’The Czech seventh seed, unsettling Nadal with the power of his shot-making, missed a golden opportunity to take the first set when he squandered four set points in the 12th game.But in a dramatic tiebreak he made no mistake, thundering down an ace after the courtside umpire refused a late challenge from a furious Nadal.Nadal missed out on a set point in the 12th game of the second set but he then saved a Berdych set point in the tie-break, and the pumped-up Spaniard levelled the match when the Czech went long.Second seed Nadal began to seize the initiative as Berdych faded, taking the third set 6-4 and breaking in the first game of the fourth set with a searing forehand winner down the line.And Berdych, whose previous match ended in bitterness after he accused Nicolas Almagro of deliberately targeting him with a forehand, could find no way back as Nadal sealed the win. – Nampa-AFP