ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½

Skip to main content

Nadal, Medvedev to meet in history-making Australian final

Rafael Nadal celebrates after defeating Matteo Berrettini of Italy in their semifinal match at the Australian Open tennis championships, on Jan. 28, 2022. (Andy Brownbill / AP) Rafael Nadal celebrates after defeating Matteo Berrettini of Italy in their semifinal match at the Australian Open tennis championships, on Jan. 28, 2022. (Andy Brownbill / AP)
Share
MELBOURNE, Australia -

Rafael Nadal is within one victory of a men's record 21st Grand Slam singles title.

The 35-year-old Spaniard advanced to the Australian Open final for the sixth time with a 6-3, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 win over seventh-seeded Matteo Berrettini on Friday.

He'll have to beat U.S. Open champion Daniil Medvedev on Sunday to make history. And Medvedev is chasing a piece of history of his own after reeling off the last five games to defeat Stefanos Tsitispas 7-6 (5), 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 in a heated semifinal. He's aiming to be the first man in the Open era to win his second Grand Slam title at the next major tournament.

The second-seeded Medvedev has had an emotional and challenging run to back-to-back Australian Open finals. He had to deal with a hostile crowd in his second-round win over Nick Kyrgios, had to save a match point and rally from two sets down to beat Felix Auger-Aliassime in a nearly five-hour quarterfinal win, and had to regain his composure after an angry outburst at the umpire on Friday.

He yelled at chair umpire Jaume Campistol after dropping serve in the second set, demanding that Tsitsipas be cautioned for receiving coaching from his father in the crowd. He took a five-minute break after dropping the set, took control late in the third set and then dominated the last five games after Tsitsipas was eventually cautioned for getting coaching from the stands.

Nadal's run to a 29th Grand Slam final has been comparatively serene.

After the last point, he stopped, beamed a wide grin and then punched the air three times.

Nadal arrived in Australia not knowing how long he would last after months off the tour dealing with a serious foot injury and then a bout of COVID-19. He skipped Wimbledon after losing in the French Open semifinals to Novak Djokovic, and didn't play at all after August.

"Every day has been an issue in terms of problems on the foot. Doubts still here ... probably for the rest of my career because I have what I have and that's something that we cannot fix," Nadal said. "But for me it's amazing ... (to) just compete and play tennis at the high level again, facing the most important players of the world."

Last month, he wasn't even sure he'd be able to return to the tour. But he won a tune-up tournament in Melbourne to start 2022 and has taken six straight matches at the first Grand Slam event of the year.

One more and he'll break the record of 20 major championships he shares with Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic. Nadal would also become just the fourth man to win all four Grand Slam titles at least twice.

Nadal's win over Wimbledon runner-up Berrettini, under a closed roof at Rod Laver Arena because of heavy rain, was his 500th on hard courts at tour level. He's only won the Australian Open once, in 2009.

Adding a second was his lone focus after yet another semifinal win.

"For me, it's all about the Australian Open more than anything else," Nadal said in his on-court TV interview. "I have been a little unlucky (here) in my career with some injuries. I played some amazing finals with good chances."

He lost classic five-set finals at Melbourne Park to Djokovic in 2012 and Federer in 2017. Nadal lost in four sets to Stan Wawrinka in 2014 and had a straight-set defeat against Djokovic three years ago.

"I feel very lucky that I won once," he said. "I never thought about another chance in 2022."

Nadal broke Berrettini's opening service games in the first two sets and, after dropping the third set on a rare service lapse, he rallied to finish off the match in just under three hours. That in itself was a relief after his long five-set win over Denis Shapovalov two days earlier in the quarterfinals.

Nadal was the only member of the so-called Big Three who had a chance to break the deadlock in Australia this time.

Federer missed the tournament to continue his recovery from knee surgery. Djokovic, who has won nine of his Grand Slam titles at Melbourne Park, was deported after an 11-day visa saga on the eve of the tournament because he failed to meet Australia's strict COVID-19 vaccination requirements.

"To be able to be where I am today, I don't know, I really can't explain in words how important is for me in terms of energy, in terms of personal satisfaction, in terms of being very thankful," Nadal said. "For me it's something completely unexpected, so I am super happy.

"For me, it's a present, just be here and play tennis."

He said he was taking a different approach to his preparations, but couldn't really change his approach on court.

"I am taking now the things a little bit in a different way. Of course always with competitive spirit that I have, because I can't go against that. It's my personal DNA," he said. "But in some way, I don't know, just be what I am and be able to have the chance to compete at this level, it's a positive energy for me to keep going."

Medevedev will need to take a calmer approach after beating Tsitsipas in the semifinals for the second year in a row at Melbourne Park. He lost to Djokovic in last year's final, but then beat the No. 1-ranked player for the U.S. Open title.

"I'm going to play again against one of the greatest," Medvedev said of Sunday's final. "Again, I'm going to play somebody going for the 21st Slam. I'm ready."

CTVNews.ca ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½

Police have arrested an 18-year-old woman who allegedly stole a Porsche and then ran over its owner in an incident that was captured on video.

Since she was a young girl growing up in Vancouver, Ginny Lam says her mom Yat Hei Law made it very clear she favoured her son William, because he was her male heir.

Advocates have identified the woman who died this week after being shot by police in Surrey, B.C., as a South American refugee who was raising a young daughter.

Three men were injured after trying to subdue a man armed with a knife during afternoon prayers at a Montreal-area mosque Friday afternoon.

A 15-year-old boy who was the subject of an emergency alert in New Brunswick has been arrested.

The search for a missing six-year-old boy in Shamattawa is continuing Friday as RCMP hope recent tips can help lead to a happy conclusion.

Provincial police investigating the death of a cat that was allegedly set on fire in Orillia earlier this week released surveillance video of a person of interest in the case.

Local Spotlight

Getting a photograph of a rainbow? Common. Getting a photo of a lightning strike? Rare. Getting a photo of both at the same time? Extremely rare, but it happened to a Manitoba photographer this week.

An anonymous business owner paid off the mortgage for a New Brunswick not-for-profit.

They say a dog is a man’s best friend. In the case of Darren Cropper, from Bonfield, Ont., his three-year-old Siberian husky and golden retriever mix named Bear literally saved his life.

A growing group of brides and wedding photographers from across the province say they have been taken for tens of thousands of dollars by a Barrie, Ont. wedding photographer.

Paleontologists from the Royal B.C. Museum have uncovered "a trove of extraordinary fossils" high in the mountains of northern B.C., the museum announced Thursday.

The search for a missing ancient 28-year-old chocolate donkey ended with a tragic discovery Wednesday.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police is celebrating an important milestone in the organization's history: 50 years since the first women joined the force.

It's been a whirlwind of joyful events for a northern Ontario couple who just welcomed a baby into their family and won the $70 million Lotto Max jackpot last month.

A Good Samaritan in New Brunswick has replaced a man's stolen bottle cart so he can continue to collect cans and bottles in his Moncton neighbourhood.

Stay Connected