Australian Open 2014 Final - Video Highlights and Live Stream: Rafael Nadal Faces Stanislas Wawrinka Sunday 3:30 a.m. EST
Rafael Nadal will look to bag his 14th grand slam title when he plays against Stanislas Wawrinka in the finals of the 2014 Australian Open at 3:30 a.m. EST Sunday at the Rod Laver Arena.
Nadal is now one win away from tying the grand slam record of tennis legend Pete Sampras, and the Spanish tennis ace looks poised to make history on Sunday.
The top-seeded Nadal has been living up to expectations all tournament long, and he showed how dominating he can be during the semifinals.
Nadal cruised to a 7-6, 6-3, 6-3, straight set victory over rival Roger Federer in the semifinals on Friday. The 27-year-old native of Mallorca has been nearly flawless in this year's Aussie Open, dropping just one set in his first five matches.
Nadal, as expected, is the overwhelming favorite heading into Sunday's showdown, and not just because of their tournament seeding. The current world's No. 1 tennis player has yet to lose against Wawrinka in 12 matches, but Nadal is remaining cautious of his finals opponent, who has been proving his doubters wrong all tournament long.
"He's playing better than ever," Nadal said when asked about his upcoming match against Wawrinka. "He's a player that is ready to win against everybody today. If I don't play my best tennis, I am sure that he will win three sets against me. "I'm not going to have the chance to beat him."
The eighth-seeded Wawrinka earned a trip to his first-ever grand slam final by dispatching higher-ranked opponents.
The 28-year-old Swiss scored one of the biggest wins of his career when he finally defeated No. 2 seed and three-time defending champion Novak Djokovic in the quarterfinals. It was followed by a hard-earned win over seventh seed Tomas Berdych in the semifinals.
Wawrinka will look to avenge the loss of his good friend and countryman, Federer, to Nadal, and the surprising finalist expressed confidence about his chances against his heavily-favored opponent.
"I'm playing my best tennis here, physically I'm ready. I had two days off, so that's perfect for me before the final. I'm going to try everything," Wawrinka said in an interview via Independent UK. "Before beating Djokovic it was the same. Just the fact that I'm always trying and I always think that I can change the statistics, that's positive."
Tennis fans can catch the live stream of the Nadal vs. Wawrinka here, while video highlights are available here.