Australian Open 2019: Rafael Nadal demolishes Stefanos Tsitsipas in semifinal encounter

It doesn't matter how many Grand slams you have won in the past or how many semifinals you have reached. You still have to give your everything, bring your A-game to the front every day, every tournament and every Grand slam round.

Rafael Nadal did just that. Continuing his trend of winning all his matches in straight sets at the Australian Open this year, the Spaniard extended his winning streak by thrashing Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-2, 6-4, 6-0 with some earth-shattering shots in the semifinal. By doing so, he has entered the final of the Australian Open and has a chance to complete a double Career Grand Slam.

The expectations from both the players were very high coming into the match as Tsitsipas had bested Roger Federer in the fourth round and Nadal had barely been tested by any of his opponents in the tournament. Tennis legend Mc Enroe even described Tsitsipas's win over Federer as a changing of the guard.

Although the first set was fairly easy for Nadal, Tsitsipas started playing well in the second set until he was broken at 4-4. The Spaniard converted the break point and held his serve to take the second set.

After winning the first two sets Nadal started playing more confidently, with some breathtaking shots and with more control and power. Forget about converting a break point, it became impossible for Tsitsipas to even create a break point opportunity until the third set.

He finally got a chance to break Nadal's serve in the third set, more because of Nadal's lapse in concentration than anything different that the Greek did. Nadal regained his composure to finish the third set by handing a bagel (6-0) to Tsitsipas, winning the match in an hour and 46 minutes.

Throughout the match Nadal outplayed the 20-year-old in terms of athleticism and came up with a return for every shot that Tsitsipas played. During the post-match interaction with McEnroe, Nadal applauded Tsitsipas for his efforts and mentioned that it was a great feat by the young Greek to reach the semifinals of a Grand Slam at the age of 20.

Nadal will face the winner of the other semifinal match (Novak Djokovic vs Lucas Pouille) in the final.