Rafael Nadal defeated Grigor Dimitrov in the Australian Open semi-final match on Friday that lasted nearly five hours. Nadal battled Dimitrov to qualify for the final against Roger Federer. The last time Nadal and Federer had met in a grand slam final was in 2011 French Open, which Nadal had won.
It is also the first time Nadal has reached the final of a major tournament since 2014. “Grigor was playing unbelievable, it was a great match,” Nadal said after the match.
Nadal beat the Bulgarian 6-4, 5-7, 7-6, 6-7, 6-4 on Friday. Before the match against Dimitrov, Nadal had defeated Milos Raonic and Gaël Monfils. Federer, on Thursday, had won against Stan Wawrinka 7-5, 6-3, 1-6, 4-6, 6-3.
The final will be played on Sunday.
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