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Welcome to Day 12 at Melbourne Park!
FEDERER into 30th Grand Slam final
CHUNG retires 1-6 2-5 down
BABOS/MLADENOVIC win women's doubles
by Leigh Walsh
15 mins ago
Well then, a premature end to proceedings at Melbourne Park, but a typically lovely chat between Jim Courier and Federer, with the crowd hanging on every word. That puts Federer into his 30th Grand Slam final, a remarkable achievement from an extraordinary player.

He will take on Marin Cilic in a replay of last year’s Wimbledon final. The Swiss emerged victorious on that occasion, with Cilic struck down by blisters, similarly to Chung tonight. Here’s what Federer had to say about his upcoming opponent:

“We saw it against Rafa, and we saw it again last night against Edmund. He brings power, basically everything. He had the same problem as Chung had in the Wimbledon final. We will see a fresh and ready Marin this time around. He has the power, and if he’s come this far he’s playing well. He crushed me in the US Open that time, so thanks for reminding me!”

19 mins ago
Roger Federer
PICTURE PERFECT - Federer marches on
22 mins ago
"I THOUGHT THE FIRST SET WAS KIND OF NORMAL, I COULDN’T TELL WHAT WAS GOING ON WITH HIM. I GUESS I WAS TOO FOCUSSED. IN THE SECOND SET HE WAS GETTING SLOWER, FIGHTING WITH THE BLISTER. THEY CAN HURT A LOT. IT FEELS BITTER SWEET. I AM INCREDIBLY HAPPY TO BE IN THE FINALS, BUT NOT LIKE THIS."
- Federer on his opponent
25 mins ago
Chung retires at 1-6 2-5 down
Sad scenes here as Hyeon Chung retires while midway through his own service game, and that has just popped a pin in the atmosphere balloon around Rod Laver Arena.

He claps the crowd as he walks off, and they respond in kind. It's been a great run for the Korean, but this isn't the way he will have wanted it to finish.

29 mins ago
*Chung 1-6 2-5 Federer
After treatment for a blister on his foot, Chung is up and running again, holding serve from the restart.

Federer follows with yet another comfortable hold. Despite the scoreline, the Swiss isn't quite firing on his own serve. His first serve percentage is a lowly 43 per cent, but when he does land it he's near unstoppable, winning 15 of 16 points behind his opening delivery.

Chung should be asking more questions of the second serve, but he can't manage it so far. He'll serve to stay in the second.

34 mins ago

37 mins ago
*Chung 1-6 1-4 Federer
Federer breaks to 15, with a trademark backhand passing shot up the line. He is reading Chung’s serve like a book, and when you break down the stats it’s easy to see why. As AO Analyst pointed out pre-match, the Korean’s average first serve speed is 9km/h slower than the average of Federer’s first five opponents.

The defending champion is dining out on it.

Before I finish typing, Federer holds with an ace and Chung summons the trainer. Looking like a medical timeout.

44 mins ago
roger federer australian open 2018 rod laver arena
SWISS TIMING - Federer is coasting
1 hour ago
*Chung 1-6 1-2 Federer
As the players exchange holds early in the second, a quick note on the crowd. Judging by the cheers ringing down from the stands, there are plenty of Chung fans in attendance. It’s not often Federer plays in an atmosphere when his opponent gets a large chunk of the support, but it’s the case tonight.

Will it help rally the youngster? Here's hoping. At the moment his opponent is dictating and he's typing as fast as he can but can't keep up.

1 hour ago
Chung 1-6 Federer
Federer closes out the first set with his third break of the match, and it’s been all one-way traffic so far on Rod Laver Arena. The errors are coming all too frequently from Chung’s Yonex racquet now, which wouldn’t be quite as big an issue if his winner count was higher than two.

Three set points come and go for Federer, but he gets a look at a fourth when Chung throws in a double fault. With the way the Swiss has been cracking his return, it’s no surprise the Korean’s feeling the pressure.

Federer closes in style, ripping a forehand crosscourt, and that’s a smart play the Swiss is deploying. When you play a speedy opponent, hitting in-behind can often be more effective than going into the open court.

1 hour ago

1 hour ago
Chung 1-4 Federer*
Chung’s broken again. He overcooks a backhand lob, and then two further errors off that wing leave him in a 15-40 hold. Two break points for Federer and he only needs one, with the Korean spraying a forehand wide.

That's the thing about Grand Slam semifinals. You can't give away free games like that.

1 hour ago
*Chung 1-3 Federer
What makes this match-up so tough for Chung - despite the fact that he’s playing a 19-time Grand Slam champion of course! - is just how much better Federer’s serve is. The defending champion will win so many free points off it, and can rely on it to get him out of trouble, unlike the Korean.

Having said that, Federer's landed just 21 per cent of his first serves so far, which is quite uncharacteristic. Maybe adapting to the indoor conditions? Anyway, he's just held to love.

1 hour ago

1 hour ago
Chung 1-2 Federer*
As Chung gets on the board, holding to 15, let’s take a look at AO Analyst Craig O’Shannessy’s take on the match-up:

“The length of the rally will be the dominant theme. Roger will surely dominate the shorter rallies. Chung will perform significantly better in the longer ones. Whoever gets the other to bend to their own intentions will win the match.”

“Federer’s specialty is the short rallies. He has won 65 more points than he has lost in the 0-4 shot range, is +28 in the 5-8 shot range, and is just +10 in the longer rallies of nine shots or more.”

1 hour ago
Chung 0-2 Federer*
Federer holds, but he’s made to work for it and, in the end, it’s safe to say he got a touch lucky. Break point down, he draws the error from Chung in a relatively lengthy exchange - there’s been plenty of balls hit so far in this one, maybe a few too many for the Swiss’ liking.

At deuce, Chung plays some bold tennis, attacking the net. Federer opts for the backhand crosscourt pass, it clips the tape and drifts tantalisingly over Chung and in. From there, he holds with a forehand winner.

1 hour ago
Chung 0-1 Federer*
Federer is here to play! First game, first break, and he is striking the ball beautifully. He moves 15-40 ahead, and that’s when Chung offers a glimpse of his capabilities, winning back-to-back points by inviting the Swiss into long rallies before drawing the error. He’ll look to do that plenty tonight.

But at deuce, Federer reads Chung’s serve expertly, pinning two returns deep in the court and he's in full control from there.

1 hour ago
We've seen this movie before
Roger Federer’s achievements are so spectacular, I’m sometimes guilty of skimming over the numbers without really stopping to let them sink in. So let’s write them down, and marvel:

- He is contesting a 43rd Grand Slam semifinal
- He is bidding to reach his 7th Australian Open final and 30th (!!!) overall
- He is looking to reach a major final without dropping a set for the sixth time
- He is the oldest man to reach the semifinals at a Grand Slam since Jimmy Connors at the 1991 US Open

2 hours ago
Spotlight on: Hyeon Chung
Hyeon Chung has played Roger Federer before. Sort of. Born in Suwon, a walled city 30km south of Seoul in South Korea, to a father who coached tennis in high school, he picked up a racket one day and started taking the first of what would become millions of swings, each one more refined than the last.

With his older brother Hong - a left-hander - for company, they fashioned their own mini tennis court out the front of the house, with an imaginary net, lines and characters. They were no longer Hyeon and Hong, but Roger and Rafa.

Tonight, Chung no longer needs to use his imagination. With his proud older brother watching on from the box, the 21-year-old goes up against one of his childhood idols. The reward? A spot in the Australian Open final.

2 hours ago
Hyeon Chung Quarterfinal AO2018
THE FUTURE IS HERE - Chung makes his way onto court
2 hours ago
Coming up: Hyeon Chung v Roger Federer
Welcome back, tennis fans, and hello from under the roof on Rod Laver Arena. Yes, the heavens have opened just in time for this, the highly-anticipated clash between Roger Federer, playing in his 43rd Grand Slam semifinal, and Hyeon Chung, contesting his first.

There’s a real buzz rippling around the stadium already, and nothing quite gets those chills going down the spine than a national anthem, which has just been sung loud and proud in honour of Australia Day.

It may be bucketing down outside, but there's a muggy air inside the arena. Federer is known to thrive indoors - with no wind and no sun, he finds his sweet spot with ease. But let's not forget Chung's own achievements under the roof. He won the NextGen ATP Finals indoors in Milan in November, the biggest title of his career to-date.

The players are due out on court in about 10 minutes or so. Let’s get to know Hyeon Chung, shall we?

3 hours ago

3 hours ago
Babos: "I need to say thank you to Kiki. We started again after two years off, and to start with a win here is amazing. I was in tears for sure. We were coming from the bottom, we had tough moments, but we fought through."

Mladenovic: "It’s pretty tough to speak last! Thank you, girls. I would like to thank really much my partner. An old-time friend. We have known each other since we started playing. We have been through many things. To win a Grand Slam in our first tournament back… unbelievable."

3 hours ago

3 hours ago
Babos/Mladenovic clinch women's doubles title
Timea Babos and Kiki Mladenovic end Elena Vesnina and Ekaterina Makarova’s career Grand Slam bid, winning 6-4 6-3 to clinch their first major title as a team.

The French-Hungarian duo have beaten the world’s top two teams en route to this Australian Open crown. It’s Mladenovic’s second major women’s doubles title, after she won Roland Garros in 2016.

The pair celebrate, and when they sit down on their bench to let the scale of their achievements sink in, the tears flow. It hasn't been the easiest times of late on the singles court for Mladenovic, so she'll enjoy this sweet moment. Fantastic scenes.

4 hours ago

4 hours ago
Babos/Mladenovic 6-4 Makarova/Vesnina
Now then. From 2-4 down in the opening set, Babos and Mlandeovic reel off four straight games to take the opening set. The Hungarian-French combo played much more aggressive tennis than their Russian counterparts down the stretch, hitting double the number of winners.

There’s been little to separate these two sides this tournament. Both arrived at the final having won 116 games each.

4 hours ago
“WE KNOW HOW TO DEAL WITH THIS PRESSURE, IT'S NOT EASY, BUT WE'RE NOT EVEN TALKING ABOUT THE GRAND SLAM. WE WANT TO ENJOY THE FINAL, TO GIVE SOME ENERGY TO EACH OTHER, TO SMILE.”
- Vesnina insists the Russians won't feel the pressure
5 hours ago
Babos/Mladenovic v Makarova/Vesnina
Just the small matter of history on the line today for Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina, as the talented Russian duo bid for the Golden Career Slam. Let’s explain that one: as a team, they have won Roland Garros (2013), US Open (2014), Olympic Gold (2016) and Wimbledon (2017), with the Australian Open the only major crown missing from their collection.

Just five teams have completed the career Grand Slam in doubles in the Open Era: Kathy Jordan and Anne Smith, Martina Navratilova and Pam Shriver, Gigi Fernandez and Natasha Zvereva, Serena and Venus Williams, and Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci. Of those, Serena and Venus are the only two to also win Olympic Gold together. Shriver and Fernandez did win doubles gold medals but with different partners.

Timea Babos and Kiki Mladenovic are bidding for their first Grand Slam doubles title together, having finished runner-up at Wimbledon in 2014. Mladenovic has won a major title, however, teaming up with Caroline Garcia to win 2016 Roland Garros.

5 hours ago
Day 12. Where has the time gone?

The 2018 Australian Open has had a bit of everything. On Saturday, the world No.1 and No.2 will face off in the women’s singles final, the first Grand Slam title bout contested between players who have both saved match points en route to the last day. That gives you a little insight into the drama that has unfolded in the women’s draw.

Tonight, however, it’s all about the men, with Roger Federer and Hyeon Chung facing off for the right to play Marin Cilic in Sunday’s final. It’s a classic master versus apprentice battle, with the 14 year and 284-day age gap between the players the fourth largest between major semifinalists in the Open Era.

We will bring you the build-up for that match from around 1915 AEDT. Before that, there’s the not so small matter of the women’s doubles final.