|
 The American, however, will first have to overcome the pure
hitting of Madison Keys after the 19-year-old ended the fairytale
run of Serena's older sister Venus, despite suffering from a thigh
injury that hampered her movement.
With many suggesting prior to the tournament it could signify an
epochal shift in both games, the teenager represents the up and
comers in the semi-finals after Djokovic and Wawrinka crushed the
last hopes of 'Generation Next' in the men's draw.
Djokovic, seeking to become the second man to win a fifth Australian
Open title, beat Canada's Milos Raonic 7-6(5) 6-4 6-2 in the late
match on Rod Laver Arena, hours after Wawrinka had easily dispatched
fifth seed Kei Nishikori 6-3 6-4 7-6(6).
"Definitely expecting a marathon like the last couple of years. I'm
sure that both of us will give our best to perform our best tennis,"
Djokovic said in a courtside interview.
"We always ask for the best of each other."
 It will be the third successive year Djokovic and Wawrinka have met
at the Australian Open, with the man winning those epic clashes
ultimately going on to clinch the title.
As defending champion in 2013, Djokovic prevailed 12-10 in the fifth
set in their fourth round clash.
Last year, Wawrinka won the fifth set 9-7 in their quarter-final,
indicating fans on Friday should be set for another epic encounter.
"You know when you play Novak, especially in semi-final in a grand
slam, you have to play your best game," Wawrinka said.
"You have to play your best tennis if you want to push him. So far
I'm playing great. I'm confident with my game."
PARTY POOPER
American teenager Keys proved to be the ultimate party pooper with
her victory over Venus while at the same time indicating the mantle
of American women's tennis should be in safe hands when it is moved
on from the two sisters.
Serena and Venus had been hoping to provide fans with the first
all-Williams sisters clash at a grand slam since the 2009 Wimbledon
final in the semi-finals.
Keys, who was inspired at four years old to take up the game after
seeing Venus play at Wimbledon, refused to succumb to sentimentality
and demonstrated the ball striking and power hitting, which had
destroyed players of the caliber of double Wimbledon champion Petra
Kvitova, in a 29-minute first set.
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An adductor injury that forced her out of the Wimbledon third round
last year, just days after she had stormed to the Eastbourne title,
however, flared up again in the second set, which brought back some
desperate memories.
"It was definitely a flashback to Wimbledon for me," Keys said of
the injury that forced her to take an injury break while trailing
4-1 in the second set.
"It was quite an overwhelming moment and scary ... and I had the
nightmare of 'I don't want this to happen again'."
Keys, now coached by former number one Lindsay Davenport, however,
showed her maturity and mental toughness once she settled to
overpower Venus and battle through the injury to advance to her
first grand slam semi-final.
"It's definitely an amazing moment," she added. "I'm enjoying those
moments for little bits of time and then refocusing and thinking
about the next round."
Keys' chances of making the final have improved with the world
number one battling the effects of a cold after a virus hit several
players at the tournament.
"I've been sick the past few days," a hoarse-sounding Serena told
reporters after her 6-2 6-2 destruction of last year's finalist
Dominika Cibulkova.
"It's just getting worse and worse. I heard it's a virus going
around with a lot of the players.
"I think I caught it."
(Editing by Sudipto Ganguly)
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