The winner will play for their first Major title on Sunday against Novak Djokovic.
25-year-old Daniil Medvedev has reached his third semifinal out of the last five Slams, all on hard courts. He will walk onto Rod Laver Arena with a 19-match winning streak, dating back to the Paris Masters in November. This is also a third Major semifinal for 22-year-old Stefanos Tsitsipas, though unlike Medvedev, he’s yet to advance farther. Two days ago, he pulled off an amazing comeback victory over Rafael Nadal, becoming only the second man to defeat Nadal from two sets down at a Major.
Three significant doubles matches will also take place on Friday, including the championship match in women’s doubles, featuring two of the top three seeds.
Friday’s doubles action will begin at 1:00pm local time, with the men’s semifinal to start at 7:30pm.
Daniil Medvedev (4) vs. Stefanos Tsitsipas (5)
It’s the 2020 ATP Finals champion against the 2019 ATP Finals champion. Medvedev has dominated their rivalry 5-1. And it’s a rivalry that started out quite bitterly. In their first meeting, at the Miami Open in 2018, they exchanged harsh words after the match, as both were frustrated by extended toilet breaks the other man had taken. In comments since that incident, they’ve expressed a bit more respect for each other. Medvedev claimed their first five encounters, with Tsitsipas prevailing in their most recent one, during his run to the title at the 2019 ATP Finals. Their only previous match at a Major occurred at the 2018 US Open, which Daniil won in four sets. The Russian should be the physically and emotionally fresher player today. While Medvedev did appear to be cramping a bit after his three-set win over Andrey Rublev in the quarterfinals, he spent two full hours less on court Wednesday than Tsitsipas. Stefanos fought late into the night for over four hours against Nadal, though the Greek did receive a walkover in his previous round from an injured Matteo Berrettini.
Medvedev has been serving excellently this fortnight, striking 57 aces and just 15 double faults. And he’s won 80% of first serve points through five rounds. Tsitsipas’ service numbers have not been as strong until he played Nadal, when his serving was simply stellar, with 17 aces and no double faults. Stefanos not only won 79% of first serve points against the all-time great, he impressively earned 69% of second serve points. Breaks of serve may be crucial on another hot day in Melbourne, so the man who holds serve more comfortably will have a significant advantage. But considering their history, as well as Medvedev’s current winning streak, Daniil is the favorite to reach his second Major final.
Other Notable Matches on Day 12:
In the women’s doubles championship match, it’s 2019 US Open champions Elise Mertens and Aryna Sabalenka (2) vs. Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova (3), who won two Majors in 2018.
In the men’s doubles semifinals, it’s defending champions Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury (5) vs. Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares (6), who won two Slams in 2016, and are undefeated since re-forming their team this year.
And Salisbury will also play in the mixed doubles semifinals, as it’s Desirae Krawczyk and Joe Salisbury vs. Sam Stosur and Matthew Ebden (WC), who the Aussie fans will undoubtedly be cheering on.
Friday’s full order of play is here.
