After a dominant start, Rafael Nadal beat Italy’s Matteo Berrettini in the Australian Open semi-finals, he moved one win away from a record 21st Grand Slam men’s title.
Berrettini, the seventh seed, ultimately made the match a battle, but Nadal won 6-3 6-2 3-6 6-3.
With 20 major wins, the 35-year-old Spaniard is tied with long-time rivals Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer.
In Sunday’s final, Nadal will face Daniil Medvedev, who defeated Stefanos Tsitsipas.
“The first two sets were some of the best I’ve played for a long time,” said Nadal, who won his only Melbourne title in 2009.
“Against a difficult opponent, a great opponent, one of the best of the world, I was able to play I think at a very high level for a long time.
“I had to suffer and I had to fight but it means a lot to be in the final again.”
Nadal’s success of reaching his 29th Grand Slam final comes only months after a foot injury threatened to derail his brilliant career.
Russian seed number two In Friday’s second men’s semi-final, Medvedev won a high-quality match against Greek fourth seed Tsitsipas, 7-6 (7-5) 4-6 6-4 6-1.
Medvedev, 25, is seeking for his second Grand Slam victory in a row after winning his first major in September at the US Open.
He also wants to go one step further in Melbourne after losing to Djokovic in the final last year. Djokovic did not compete this year after being banned from Australia due to a visa dispute about his lack of vaccination.