Daniil Medvedev has tapped into the energy of the crowd at Melbourne Park by playing both hero and villain.
Tiley denies reports Djokovic will sue Tennis Australia
Nadal will have the chance to claim the top spot back on Monday if he wins his third title in Acapulco
Rafael Nadal's hopes of completing a rare calendar year Grand Slam ended on Thursday when the Spaniard pulled out of his highly-anticipated Wimbledon semi-final showdown against Australian Nick Kyrgios with an abdominal strain.
Roger Federer will start his 2014 campaign at the Brisbane International next January, underlining the tournament's status as the biggest of the Australian Open warm-ups.
Stan Wawrinka was not fully convincing in his four-set victory against Serbian Viktor Troicki but the fourth seed refused to fuss over the nature of his win after securing his place in the fourth round of the Australian Open on Friday.
On the men's side, the fields have already been divided into two ATP 250 tournaments.
Dominic Thiem will watch a treasured home movie of his recent win over Novak Djokovic at the season-ending ATP Tour Finals as he seeks inspiration to take down the defending champion Serb in the Australian Open decider.
Roger Federer's struggles in 2013 are unlikely to hasten his exit from the game and the Swiss master could hit back and win next year's Australian Open, according to tennis great Rod Laver.
Stefanos Tsitsipas credited his stellar comeback win against Rafa Nadal in Wednesday's Australian Open quarter-final to his peace of mind, saying he had attained a state of "nirvana" during the match despite falling back by two sets.
If he does manage to beat Novak Djokovic or Cam Norrie in Sunday's final, it may be that winning the most prestigious title in tennis will wash away all his previous sins in the eyes of his compatriots.
"I told my coach before the match and yesterday that I was mentally completely dead and no battery," he told reporters.
'We've said every year that we're the 'happy slam'. But now we're saying we're the 'very safe and happy slam'.'
Novak Djokovic is finally set to return to action next week after six months out with an elbow injury and will then decide whether to take part in the Jan 15-28 Australian Open.
Fabio Fognini and Salvatore Caruso had to be separated by the court supervisor after the first all-Italian Australian Open men's singles match
Australian great Ken Rosewall will bestow the French Open trophy on the men's singles champion next month and sees only one grateful player ready to claim it -- Rafael Nadal.
Gilles Simon will carry the distinction of being the first man to prise a set off Novak Djokovic at this year's Australian Open but the lion-hearted Frenchman was crushed after going down in a five-set classic on Sunday.
Former champion Maria Sharapova found inspiration in a change of dress to put away unseeded American Lauren Davis 6-1, 6-7(5), 6-0 at the Australian Open on Friday and set up an intriguing fourth round match with rising Swiss talent Belinda Bencic.
Former golden girl Eugenie Bouchard's hopes of rehabilitation at the Australian Open came to a swift end on Wednesday as wily Agnieszka Radwanska sent the Canadian spinning out of the tournament with a 6-4, 6-2 defeat in the second round.
Newly crowned Australian Open champion NOvak Djokovic was not short of energy as he overpowered Andy Murray to claim his sixth Australian Open title.
'It wasn't really a nice time to be dealing with everything'
Images from Day 6 of the Australian Open in Melbourne on Saturday.
Driven by having started out in life with "literally nothing", Novak Djokovic is determined to end up as the man with the most Grand Slam singles titles when he finally hangs up his racket. Djokovic said his hunger for success came from growing up in a time of conflict and privation.
Serena Williams edged past Spain's Garbine Muguruza 2-6, 6-3, 6-2 to reach the quarters.
Verstappen struggled for grip through qualifying but it all came together in his last effort
Photos from matches on Day 2 at the Australian Open on Tuesday
Medvedev will be glad to play the role of dream wrecker once again.
Awesome images from the world of Sport 2018.
World number five Juan Martin del Potro began his 2014 season with a win, albeit a scrappy one over Frenchman Nicolas Mahut to advance to the quarter-finals of the Sydney International on Wednesday.
Naomi Osaka has sacked her second coach in seven months, splitting with Jermaine Jenkins
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