Nevertheless, Djokovic knows the danger posed by the 17-time Grand Slam champion, who romped past Tomas Berdych earlier on Tuesday to reach his 12th Australian Open semifinal.
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The No. 3-ranked Federer put on a dazzling display of footwork and shot variety against the No. 6-ranked Czech, improving his record over Berdych to 16-6.
But that approach is what has helped win her 21 major titles, and Williams’ aggressive returns finally helped her convert on her fourth set point, following a heavy ground stroke to the net and putting away a volley.
Williams twice had treatment for the after-effects of food poisoning before securing an 18th successive win over the five-times grand slam champion.
Federer is also 34 and it has been quite some time since he was able to take for granted advancement to the last four at grand slams.
Federer has been nearly flawless en route to another Australian Open quarter-final but faces a stern test today against Berdych.
When Laver won the title in 1969, the Australian Open didn’t award replicas of the Norman Brookes trophy to the victor, as it does today.
Serena is 19-2 all-time against Sharapova.
“This is going to be a big challenge for both of us”, Djokovic said. He was runner-up in 2014 at Wimbledon and in 2015 at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open – beaten all three times by Djokovic. No male player has managed to replicate the feat since then.
Williams, known for her slow deliveries at the beginning soon got on the scoreboard as her power serve found its range and her game started coming together. “Nothing’s guaranteed in sports”, she said. He has two wins over Djokovic, including a semifinal victory at Wimbledon, and two of his three wins over Federer came not only in the quarterfinals of the 2012 US Open but in the 2013 DDF Tennis Championships semifinals.
Nishikori did not break serve throughout the first two sets, squandering five chances in the second. It was not immediately apparent what was affecting her.
“It’s motivating because she’s at a different level”, Sharapova said.
The top-ranked Djokovic will play No. 3 Federer in a blockbuster semifinal match at the Australian Open.
“Kei played way too flat and a little far back in the court, and he rushed at some moments”, Dante Bottini, his co-coach, said.
“It does feel good, I must say, to level the head-to-head”, Djokovic, who once trailed Nadal and Federer by big margins, said.
Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland serves to Carla Suarez Navarro of…
The Swiss has built steadily throughout his run at Melbourne Park and the composed nature of his victories against the young pretender Grigor Dimitrov in the third round and Berdych showed he would be more than ready for a last four showdown.
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Radwanska will play the victor of Tuesday’s next match between No. 1 Serena Williams and fifth-seeded Maria Sharapova.
