Nadal excited for Federer showdown

Rafael Nadal is relishing the prospect of taking on great rival Roger Federer in the final of the Australian Open on Sunday.
The Spaniard booked his place in his first Grand Slam final since his triumph at the 2014 French Open with a gruelling 6-3 5-7 7-6 (7-5) 6-7 (4-7) 6-4 victory over Bulgaria’s Grigor Dimitrov in the last four on Friday.
The 30-year-old will now face old foe Federer in the showpiece event for the first Grand Slam final meeting between the pair since the 2011 French Open, a match Nadal won in four sets.
It will also be the ninth time the duo have met in a major final, with Nadal currently holding a 6-2 advantage from their previous meetings, and the Spaniard admits it will be extra special to face the 17-time Grand Slam winner once again. “It’s special to play with Roger again in a final of a Grand Slam.
“I cannot lie, it’s great,” he said. “It’s exciting for me and for both of us that we are still there and we still fighting for important events. So that’s important for us, I think.” Nadal has never lost to Federer in Melbourne although he believes their past encounters will count for very little. “No, that was a long time ago,” Nadal added. “It’s a different match, different moment for both of us. I think this match is completely different than what happened before.”