His inability to test Nadal - in part because of the Spaniard's brilliance - had been costly. When Nadal sealed the second set after one hour and 25 minutes, Berrettini had already hit 24 unforced errors. Head bowed, Berrettini looked unsure how to neutralise Nadal and the other facets of his game were suffering too.

This Berrettini shot continued to break down in the second set, enabling Nadal to take his opening two service games and move into another 3-0 lead. Nadal started sharply as he attacked Berrettini's backhand - considered the weakest part of the 25-year-old Italian's game - from the outset.Ī stream of mistakes came from this side as Berrettini fell 3-0 behind and Nadal appropriately sealed the opening set with a serve to the backhand, which the 2021 Wimbledon finalist returned into the net. With the benefit of two full days without a match since Tuesday's win, Nadal quickly quashed any uncertainty. These centred around the indoor conditions perhaps favouring the powerful Berrettini - severe thunderstorms in Melbourne meant the roof was closed throughout - and how 35-year-old Nadal would have recovered after being 'destroyed physically' from a gruelling five-set quarter-final against Canada's Denis Shapovalov. Nadal shows killer instinct at either end of the matchīefore the first semi-final there were some doubts about Nadal's chances, not least because of his injury problems last year. He is also looking to go one step further in Melbourne after losing in last year's final to Djokovic, who did not play this year after being deported from Australia in a visa row related to him being unvaccinated. Medvedev, 25, is aiming for his second successive Grand Slam title after winning the maiden major of his career at the US Open in September. Russian second seed Medvedev edged a high-quality battle with Greek fourth seed Tsitsipas, winning 7-6 (7-5) 4-6 6-4 6-1 in Friday's second men's semi-final. Nadal's achievement in reaching a 29th Grand Slam final comes only a few months after he thought a foot injury could end his illustrious career. Alerts: Get tennis news sent to your phone.'I had to suffer and I had to fight but it means a lot to be in the final again.' '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. '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. Nadal plays Daniil Medvedev, who beat Stefanos Tsitsipas, in Sunday's final. The 35-year-old Spaniard is level on 20 major titles with long-time rivals Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer.

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