Rafael Nadal Vs. Roger Federer Live Stream: When And Where To Watch Australian Open Semifinal

Federer Nadal Reuters Pic — Rafa Nadal (R) and Roger Federer will meet for the 33rd time Friday in Melbourne. A win for either player sets up a championship showdown against Switzerland's Stanislas Wawrinka. Reuters

Capping off a strong run to the 2014 Australian Open men’s final with a four-set victory over Tomas Berdych, Stanislas Wawrinka will now wait to see who he’ll face in the championship contest. The second semifinal pits No. 1 Rafael Nadal against 17-time major champion and sixth-seeded Roger Federer, who appears to be rejuvenated after multiple bouts with injury. Rafa Nadal upended his Swiss rival four times in 2013 but with Federer indicating earlier in the week that he is undoubtedly back to the strong form that has made him one of the most dominant players in the game of tennis, the Spain international will surely have his work cut out for him in Friday morning’s semifinal.

Set to meet for the 33rd time in what is widely considered the greatest tennis rivalry of all-time, Federer and Nadal understand the magnitude of this match. A win for Nadal will give 27-year-old a chance to claim his second Aussie Open and fourteenth career Grand Slam title while a win for Roger Federer will set up the first All-Swiss final in Australian Open history. Despite a career record of 10-22 against his semifinal opponent, Roger Federer said after defeating Andy Murray in the quarters that he feels explosive again and is excited to go at it with an old rival.

“It's really a big pleasure for me being back in the semi-finals,” said Federer, who won the 2004, ‘06, ‘07 and 2010 Aussie Opens. “This one feels different because of the tougher times I've had in slams, Wimbledon, at the US Open. It's nice to be back in the semis and defend my points from last year. I definitely sensed that I am back physically. I'm explosive out there. I can get to balls. I'm not afraid to go for balls. It was a great game on many levels today, not just physically. Also just mentally it was tough. Then I really played some good tennis. I was very happy.”

While Federer is self-admittedly back to full strength, Rafael Nadal continues to battle blister issues on his left hand. The wounds have become a hot topic of discussion during Nadal’s run to the semifinal round and even though they affect certain areas of his game, the lefty intends to heal as much as possible heading into the major showdown against Roger Federer.

“With the forehand is not a big issue,” he told reporters after his quarterfinal win over Grigor Dimitrov. “With the serve, little bit. I feel that with the tape I can lose the racquet when I serving. That’s my feeling, no? The racquet can go. That’s a terrible feeling for a serve, because then when you have this feeling you are not able to accelerate at the right moment. You lose a little bit the coordination. The problem is not the blister. The problem is the place. Is very difficult to cover that blister here. Is not painful, but I cannot play without that cover today.”