Compared with Mirjana Lucic-Baroni's 18-year gap between Grand Slam semi-final appearances, the 2½-year droughts of Grigor Dimitrov and Rafael Nadal were a short wait. But for each man, being among the final four at the Australian Open is a welcome return to form.
The 15th-seeded Dimitrov, who had not reached the last four at a Grand Slam event since Wimbledon in 2014, rolled into the semi-finals with a 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 victory over 11th seed David Goffin on Wednesday.
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The ninth-seeded Nadal, who had fallen short of the semi-final stage since winning the 2014 French Open, followed with a 6-4, 7-6 (7), 6-4 victory over third-seed Canadian Milos Raonic.
Dimitrov, a 25-year-old Bulgarian, was a junior standout tipped to be a future champion. With graceful movement and a one-handed backhand, he was quickly called "Baby Federer" by observers unafraid of setting lofty expectations. Like Roger Federer, Dimitrov had his best early results on grass, including an upset of defending champion Andy Murray at Wimbledon in 2014. He soared to No. 8 in the ATP rankings.
![Bulgaria's Grigor Dimitrov celebrates after defeating Belgium's David Goffin during their Australian Open quarter-final](/web/20170126104208im_/http://www.theage.com.au/content/dam/images/g/t/y/n/g/p/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gtyusg.png/1485385999472.jpg)
But his game too often bent under pressure, and two years after his breakout semi-final, which he lost to Novak Djokovic, Dimitrov fell to No.40.
Last summer, Dimitrov found the right guidance in Dani Vallverdu, a former coach of Murray and Tomas Berdych. Vallverdu said he had a "very honest chat" with Dimitrov before agreeing to work with him. In their seven months together, Dimitrov is back in the top 20.
In the first week of this season, Dimitrov beat three top-10 opponents - Dominic Thiem, Raonic and Kei Nishikori - on the way to a title in Brisbane, which has contributed to his 10-0 record thus far.
Although Vallverdu acknowledged he was surprised by the sterling start, he chalked up the rapid improvement to Dimitrov's willingness to work tirelessly.
"I didn't know I could push him this hard," Vallverdu said. "I was always a bit concerned whether I could push him, physically and mentally, as far as I'm taking him now."
Dimitrov said he was relishing the battle more than he had before.
"Right now, I'm enjoying the fight, that's for sure," he said. "I'm enjoying to run down every ball. I think also when you feel physically good and you feel well to kind of get into a match, I mean, that gives you a different perspective as soon as you get out on the court.
"Whoever you play, you know you're going to get your chance. That's already an advantage before you even step on the court."
Dimitrov frequently took advantage of opportunities against Goffin, breaking the Belgian in six of his 13 service games.
In the English portion of his brief post-match news conference, Goffin used the phrase "really solid" five times to describe Dimitrov. Goffin said he was describing his opponent's tenacity more than his physicality.
"His improvement is mentally; last few months, he proved that, mentally, he was much better than in the past," Goffin said. "He didn't give any points. He was really solid. So I think that's his biggest improvement."
The affable Dimitrov has not always been known for his ferocity. He was better known for his high-profile romances with Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova and singer Nicole Scherzinger, and an earnest and smoldering presence on social media.
"You guys get the nice side of him," Vallverdu said. "He's definitely a fighter, and he has that inside of him. That's what I'm trying to get out of his insides. It's nice to see that I think it's showing. I agree, he's an extremely nice guy - but I would say he's more of a fighter than a nice guy."
Dimitrov, who emphasised simplicity as a key to his recent successes, said he had a clearer focus now than earlier in his career.
"I think I have straighter priorities right now," he said. "I know what I want from myself as soon as I come to a tournament. I know why I worked."
![Rafael Nadal is a picture of concentration during his quarter-final against Milos Raonic on Wednesday.](http://web.archive.org./web/20170126104208im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/g/t/y/v/9/o/image.imgtype.articleLeadwide.620x349.png/1485385746113.png)
Rafael Nadal is a picture of concentration during his quarter-final against Milos Raonic on Wednesday. Photo: Getty Images
Nadal, 30, is regarded as the paragon of intensity within tennis. After his match on Wednesday, in which Raonic failed to convert six set points in the second set to even the match, Raonic said Nadal was "fighting well, which has always been his strongest attribute."
But with injuries piling up, Nadal's ability to summon his imposing best became less reliable. A 14-time major champion, Nadal had gone 10 Grand Slam events without a semi-final appearance. Before that run, he had never had a Grand Slam semi-final drought of more than three tournaments since winning his first major title at the 2005 French Open.
Nadal said he was excited just to be back in the final rounds of the most important events.
He took about 10 weeks off at the end of last year to recuperate from a wrist injury, and he has often been hurt by tentative play during his struggles. He resolved to change after reviewing video of his loss to the big-serving Raonic this month in Brisbane with his coaches Toni Nadal and Carlos Moy and seeing that he was standing "six, seven metres behind the baseline" to return serve.
"We know that we needed to change that," Nadal said. "Before the match, we were talking about trying to combine, you know, returning sometimes very close to the baseline and sometimes back. But the real thing is I felt well from inside, and I felt that I was putting some pressure on him. So I decided to stay in almost all the time."
Nadal said of Dimitrov, "Everybody thinks he's a potential winner." When asked about a possible final against his long-time rival Federer, who plays in a semi-final on Thursday night against Stan Wawrinka, Nadal said he was looking only to his own semi-final on Friday.
"I have a very tough match against Dimitrov," said Nadal, who is 7-1 against Dimitrov. "Whatever happens on the other side of the draw, I think is great for tennis that Roger is there again after an injury, after a lot of people talk about always the same things, that, probably, he will never be back."
He added, almost in passing, "I am happy to be there, too."