Novak Djokovic takes on Andy Murray in the Australian Open semi-finals on Friday in a repeat of last year's final.
Djokovic and Murray clash for the second time in a Grand Slam with the latter looking to erase some painful memories from last year. Murray's hopes were high going into the 2011 Aussie Open final but they were dashed by an inspired Djokovic who simply ran away with the match.
It took Murray the best past of four months to get over that defeat and now it's his chance for redemption. He's in the form of his life and he's hardly had an easier run to the semi-finals at any time in his career.
Plus Djokovic strained a hamstring during his quarter-final win over David Ferrer. The top seed still came through 6-4, 7-6, 6-1 but Murray will have noted that and it'll be a little confidence booster for him ahead of the match.
Djokovic was keen to play down the significance of last year's win over Murray. "Well, it's a new year, you know, new challenges for all of us," he said. "He's got Ivan Lendl now on his side. He's made some changes. But, you know, he looks fit. He's been playing well. He's definitely, you know, I think very motivated to win his first Grand Slam. He's been playing last two years finals here. He's been proving to himself and to the rest of the people that the Australian Open is probably his best Grand Slam."
"But on the other hand I have been playing quite well here in last couple years. You know, we have to expect a great match. A tournament cannot ask for better matchups in semifinals. I hope that I can step out on the court trying to repeat the same thing I did last year. But it's definitely going to take a lot of effort to be a winner from that match."
