"And that's not a knock on his current form-he's dropped just two sets in five matches, and both were the first set in matches he ended up winning comfortably-but instead an acknowledgment of how well Nadal is playing".

"I thought it was the best Wimbledon final of all time", Becker said.

In 2008, the Spaniard won his first Wimbledon crown after a 6-4, 6-4, 6-7 (5-7), 6-7 (8-10), 9-7 marathon that lasted nearly five hours.

"We had some brutal conditions to play (in) there", Federer said of their most recent matchup, per AP.

Federer and Nadal will battle for a place in the final later Friday, 11 years after they mesmerised Centre Court in a Grand Slam championship match widely regarded as the greatest ever played. But the top-seeded Serb saved two break chances in the third set.

In the third, Djokovic broke for a 4-2 lead and then saved two break points in the next game - the second with a backhand victor down the line after a 45-stroke rally. "First set, he was still probably managing his nerves and he made some uncharacteristic unforced errors".

And perhaps the lack of pace in the surface this year is helping Nadal, who's been in the best form he's shown on grass for many a year and I get the feeling that he's focussing now on equalling and eventually overtaking Fed's record of 20 major titles.

"It was a really close opening four to five games of the third set that could have gone either way - thankfully it went mine".

37 year old Federer is bidding to win his 21st Grand Slam, and extend his own lead over his opponent for the most Slam singles titles of all time.

Only five of their last 22 clashes has gone to a final set and very often the victor of these encounters has won it with a bit to spare, so if I were backing either man in match odds on Friday I'd be inclined to risk the -1.5 sets. By ranking (22nd), he should not have presented much of a threat to Djokovic, who had won three of the previous four Grand Slams. He double-faulted on his first set point but converted the second with a volley victor that clipped the net cord.

Play was halted with Bautista Agut leading 3-1 in the second set as a member of the crowd received treatment. Last year, he was beaten in five sets by Djokovic in the semifinals.

Djokovic is looking for his fifth Wimbledon title, while Bautista Agut is appearing in his first Grand Slam semifinal.

If it's hard to believe more than a decade has passed since these two rivals last shared a court at Wimbledon, it's also tough to fathom how it is that they have dominated their sport as long as they have.

Celebs are taking in some of the final matches of 2019 Wimbledon at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club on Tuesday (July 2) in London, England.

"The men's competition has been a slow burner, to put it politely, but Nadal's semi-final against Federer will ensure it catches fire on Friday".

Nadal won that match 9-7 in the fifth set.

Federer is an eight-time Wimbledon champion, while Nadal has won two titles at the All England Club.

Novak Djokovic, the third member of tennis' Big Three, will take on Spain's Roberto Bautista Agut in the other semifinal.