World No 1 Rafael Nadal fought off a big challenge from rising Bulgarian star Grigor Dimitrov to reach the semi-finals of the Australian Open on Wednesday.
Nadal got home 3-6, 7-6 (7/3), 7-6 (9/7), 6-2 in three hours 37 minutes and now will play either Andy Murray or Roger Federer for a place in Sunday’s final.
For long passages of the quarter-final on Rod Laver Arena, Nadal was struggling to put away the 22nd-seeded Dimitrov, and he needed a bit of luck at crucial stages to go through.
“I was so lucky, after saving set points in the third set,” he said. “He just missed an easy forehand ... Today was for me, so I’m so happy.”
Nadal was playing after three-time defending champion Novak Djokovic was upset by Stanislas Wawrinka late on Tuesday, and there were times when he looked like becoming another casualty.
Nadal’s serve, troubled by a large blister on his left hand, was shaky and he gave up seven double-faults, including two of them on break points.
But the 2009 Australian Open champion won through to his fourth semi-final in Melbourne and his 22nd in Grand Slams, while extending his winning streak to 10 matches.
Dimitrov, 22, who was bidding to become only the second Bulgarian to reach a Grand Slam semifinal, showed what an emerging talent he is to have Nadal under pressure for long periods.
Nadal’s opening serve was broken and Dimitrov controlled the remainder of the set as the 13-time Grand Slam champion dropped his first set of the tournament.
Nadal began to test the legs of the young Bulgarian with some longer, physical rallies in the second set, but after breaking Dimitrov’s serve he handed back the break with three double-faults in the third game.
The set went to a tiebreaker which Nadal comfortably won with an exquisite backhand flick across court to level the match.
But just when the top seed looked to be getting on top, after breaking the Bulgarian’s serve in the fifth game, Nadal’s shaky serve again cost him with a double-fault on break point.
Nadal fought off set point as the third set went into another tiebreaker and he was fortunate to survive after Dimitrov just missed a forehand winner to the corner on his first of two set points.
Nadal quickly seized the advantage to get to set point, and Dimitrov lost the set with an overhit forehand off a net cord.
Dimitrov was broken in the second game of the final set, after six deuces, on a Nadal backhand pass and the Spaniard went on to claim victory on his fourth match point.
The other semi-final will be contested between Tomas Berdych, who defeated David Ferrer yesterday, and Stanislas Wawrinka, who overcame Novak Djokovic.
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Springtime in a Broken Mirror,
Mario Benedetti, Penguin Modern Classics
Why it pays to compare
A comparison of sending Dh20,000 from the UAE using two different routes at the same time - the first direct from a UAE bank to a bank in Germany, and the second from the same UAE bank via an online platform to Germany - found key differences in cost and speed. The transfers were both initiated on January 30.
Route 1: bank transfer
The UAE bank charged Dh152.25 for the Dh20,000 transfer. On top of that, their exchange rate margin added a difference of around Dh415, compared with the mid-market rate.
Total cost: Dh567.25 - around 2.9 per cent of the total amount
Total received: €4,670.30
Route 2: online platform
The UAE bank’s charge for sending Dh20,000 to a UK dirham-denominated account was Dh2.10. The exchange rate margin cost was Dh60, plus a Dh12 fee.
Total cost: Dh74.10, around 0.4 per cent of the transaction
Total received: €4,756
The UAE bank transfer was far quicker – around two to three working days, while the online platform took around four to five days, but was considerably cheaper. In the online platform transfer, the funds were also exposed to currency risk during the period it took for them to arrive.
MATCH INFO
Juventus 1 (Dybala 45')
Lazio 3 (Alberto 16', Lulic 73', Cataldi 90 4')
Red card: Rodrigo Bentancur (Juventus)
UAE WARRIORS RESULTS
Featherweight
Azouz Anwar (EGY) beat Marcelo Pontes (BRA)
TKO round 2
Catchweight 90kg
Moustafa Rashid Nada (KSA) beat Imad Al Howayeck (LEB)
Split points decision
Welterweight
Gimbat Ismailov (RUS) beat Mohammed Al Khatib (JOR)
TKO round 1
Flyweight (women)
Lucie Bertaud (FRA) beat Kelig Pinson (BEL)
Unanimous points decision
Lightweight
Alexandru Chitoran (ROU) beat Regelo Enumerables Jr (PHI)
TKO round 1
Catchweight 100kg
Marc Vleiger (NED) beat Mohamed Ali (EGY)
Rear neck choke round 1
Featherweight
James Bishop (NZ) beat Mark Valerio (PHI)
TKO round 2
Welterweight
Abdelghani Saber (EGY) beat Gerson Carvalho (BRA)
TKO round 1
Middleweight
Bakhtiyar Abbasov (AZE) beat Igor Litoshik (BLR)
Unanimous points decision
Bantamweight
Fabio Mello (BRA) beat Mark Alcoba (PHI)
Unanimous points decision
Welterweight
Ahmed Labban (LEB) v Magomedsultan Magomedsultanov (RUS)
TKO round 1
Bantamweight
Trent Girdham (AUS) beat Jayson Margallo (PHI)
TKO round 3
Lightweight
Usman Nurmagomedov (RUS) beat Roman Golovinov (UKR)
TKO round 1
Middleweight
Tarek Suleiman (SYR) beat Steve Kennedy (AUS)
Submission round 2
Lightweight
Dan Moret (USA) v Anton Kuivanen (FIN)
TKO round 2
LILO & STITCH
Starring: Sydney Elizebeth Agudong, Maia Kealoha, Chris Sanders
Director: Dean Fleischer Camp
Rating: 4.5/5
