Australian Open 2012 TV Schedule: Federer Will Top Nadal Down Under

Like one of the last chocolates left in the box, the epic showdown between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal will have to be savored. It will also be the last time that Federer gets over on his longtime rival Nadal. 

A collision course that seems to happen often is far from a re-run. Every match these two share is always tinged with a new and enticing subplot, and this is no different. 

At 30 years old, Federer is on the wrong side of his prime. While we have no doubt that he has more in the tank, and plenty more sublime tennis in those legs, we have to accept that theses matches will now be few and far between. 

Federer has looked every bit youthful in his latest matches, dominating Bernard Tomic and getting over easily on a Juan Martin del Potro—a player who was supposed to give the old man a hard time. 

We fail to remember that this is no old man, but a wily one. His constant adherence to schedule and his own regimen has kept him as youthful as he can be, and it shows in the first Grand Slam of the year. 

I may give Nadal the edge a few months from now after Federer has been weathered by a demanding set of events, but not now. Things are flipped on their head Down Under, and the Australian Open will prove to deliver on the unexpected. 

Nadal has played his usual brand of spirited tennis, and has done so despite a heavily bandaged knee. In a rare turn, it's Nadal who comes into the event with the questions on his health and whether he can keep up his marathon-running manner of playing tennis. 

Federer is on a roll, and I question who I would take in what is sure to be a marathon match. The knee and shoulder of Nadal have to play into the equation. 

On the other side, Federer hasn't lost since last year's US Open. He is showing, what could be, one last string of brilliance, and I don't see even Nadal standing in the way of that. 

Australian Open TV Schedule: 

Coverage begins at 7 p.m. EST on the Tennis Channel and continues from 9 p.m. to 2 a.m. and from 3:30 a.m. to 6 a.m. EST on ESPN2. 

Nadal vs. Federer will be on ESPN2 at 12:30 a.m. ET January 26th. 

DirecTV subscribers can also catch every match through the Australian Open Experience.

You can find a full schedule of matches at the official website of the Australian Open.

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