Australian Open 2017 Men's Semi-Final: TV Schedule, Start Time, Live Stream
Roger Federer will take on Stan Wawrinka in the first semi-final of the 2017 Australian Open on Thursday in an all-Swiss clash.
The following day will see Rafael Nadal face Grigor Dimitrov for the right to face the winner in Sunday's final in Melbourne, Australia.
Here's the schedule for the men's semi-finals:
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| Thursday, Jan. 26 | 8:30 a.m./3:30 a.m. | (17) Roger Federer vs. (4) Stan Wawrinka | Eurosport, ESPN |
| Friday, Jan. 27 | 8:30 a.m./3:30 a.m. | (15) Grigor Dimitrov vs. (9) Rafael Nadal | Eurosport, ESPN |
The matches can be streamed live via Eurosport Player (UK), Sky Go (UK) and WatchESPN (U.S.).
(17) Roger Federer vs. (4) Stan Wawrinka
In many ways, this year's Australian Open has been a real throwback, with a number of veterans rolling back the years.
As The Times' Stuart Fraser noted, the competition could be set to produce two classic matchups in the men's and women's finals:
Federer's revival has been particularly refreshing. After an injury-hit 2016 season that ended after Wimbledon, the Swiss star entered Melbourne as the 17th seed—his lowest entry at a tournament since 2001.
Despite being handed a draw that has seen him already face Tomas Berdych and Kei Nishikori—and would have seen him play Andy Murray had the world No. 1 not been knocked out by Mischa Zverev—the 35-year-old has grown fitter and sharper as the tournament has worn on, and he's played some truly sublime tennis along the way.
Christopher Clarey of the New York Times shared his stats as he swept Zverev aside with ease in the last round:
"Federer stats
— Christopher Clarey (@christophclarey) January 24, 2017"
68% 1st serve
6 of 15 on BPs
23 of 32 net points won
65 winners, 13 Unforced Errors
Wawrinka has also had a strong tournament and shown his ruthlessness in clutch moments—the 31-year-old has played five tiebreakers in the competition thus far and won every single one, which bodes well if he and Federer play any.
However, his compatriot has been incredibly dominant in their head-to-head record, winning 18 of their 21 clashes—Federer isn't accustomed to losing against Wawrinka, and with his movement and play looking as good as it did a decade ago, he may well continue his march toward his 18th Grand Slam title.
(15) Grigor Dimitrov vs. (9) Rafael Nadal
After his own struggles with illness and injury in recent years, Nadal is also enjoying a renaissance having not been the same force he once was in Slams.
Indeed, the match is his first semi-final since the 2014 French Open that he went on to win—as the New York Times' Ben Rothenberg noted, he has been much improved in Australia this year:
What's more, he has an impressive record against Dimitrov, which also works in his favour.
Nevertheless, he believes it will be difficult to overcome the Bulgarian, per Chris Osborne and Mike Henson of BBC Sport:
"Grigor is a great player. Everybody thought he would be a top, top player before today. Finally he has started the season unbelievably. Last year was tough for him and when you come back strong it gives you even more power. I expect a tough match.
"
The 25-year-old has not quite developed as many expected him to—instead of challenging for Slams, he's only made it to the quarter-finals or beyond twice, and both occasions were in 2014.
He's impressed thus far in Melbourne, though, and saw off 11th seed David Goffin with surprising ease in their quarter-final, defeating the Belgian 6-3, 6-2, 6-4.
The resurgent Nadal will be a significant test of how far he's come—it promises to be an intriguing clash when they meet on Friday.
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