Advertisement

Nadal vs Dimitrov: 10 things you must know about the Australian Open men's semi-final

Rafael Nadal vs Grigor Dimitrov - winner of the second Australian Open men's semi-final will take on 17-time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer in final on Sunday.

Nadal vs Dimitrov: 10 things you must know about the Australian Open men's semi-final

New Delhi: Rafael Nadal is up against Grigor Dimitrov in Australian men's semi-final. The two players will lock horns at the Rod Laver arena today to seal a spot in the final.

After his struggle with injuries in the last few years, Rafa is looking fit and aggressive on the court. On the other hand, Dimitrov too, is playing the best tennis of his career since the beginning of this year.

Here are 10 things you must know about the men's semi-final

While Rafael Nadal is currently ranked ninth in the world, Grigor Dimitrov is ranked 15th.

In their previous eight meetings, Dimitrov has only beaten Nadal once and that was in their most recent meeting in Beijing two months ago.

Rafa leads 7-1 in his matches with Dimitrov, including a four-set quarter-final win at the Australian Open three years ago.

The mighty Spaniard is 66-8 against players with one-handed backhands at Slams.

Rafael Nadal won the Australian Open in 2009.

Nadal defeated Alexander Zverev, Gael Monfils and Milos Raonic and is just one step away from his fourth Australian final.

Dimitrov, five years younger than Nadal, was once hailed as a future champion and nicknamed 'Baby Fed' owing to his Roger Federer-style court movement and single-handed backhand.

Now under Murray's former coach Daniel Vallverdu, Dimitrov is unbeaten in 2017, winning his fifth career title in Brisbane and now on a run of 10 matches without defeat.

Ahead of the semi-final, Dimitrov defeated David Goffin, wild card Denis Istomin and Richard Gasquet.

The winner will play Federer or Stan Wawrinka in Sunday's final.