Federer reaches Australian Open semifinals, will face Chung

● Kerber vs Halep, Wozniacki vs Mertens in semis

Roger Federer got cranky at the chair umpire for a technology flaw in his Australian Open quarterfinal match, using the rare emotional outburst as motivation.

It helped. The 36-year-old Federer, now the oldest semifinalist in Melbourne in 41 years, beat long-time rival Tomas Berdych 76 (1), 6-3, 6-4 yesterday and will next face a challenge from the next generation.

That will be against 21-year-old Hyeon Chung, the first South Korean to reach a Grand Slam semifinal and the youngest to reach the last four at a major since 2010.

Federer’s victory extended his winning streak to 14 in Australian Open quarterfinals and to nine in a personal rivalry with Berdych that dates back to 2004. The 19-time major champion leads that head-to-head contest 20-6, including all five meetings at Melbourne Park.

Federer had to overcome a shaky start, dropping his opening service game and uncharacteristically questioning chair umpire Fergus Murphy because of a technological fault. With Berdych serving for the first set in the ninth game, Federer had challenged a line call.

After a lengthy delay, Murphy called the control room and confirmed the replay graphic couldn’t be displayed on the stadium screen, and also that the original decision stood. When he added that Federer had no challenges remaining for the set, Federer approached the chair and the crowd cheers intensified. third-round win over Lauren Davis that finished 15-13 in the third — to reach the semifinals at Melbourne Park for the first time.

Kerber, the only major champion still in contention, is riding a 14-match winning streak.

She won the Australian and U.S. Open titles two years ago and reached the No. 1 ranking, but slipped into the 20s last year. She didn’t win a title between the 2016 U.S. Open and the Sydney International earlier this month.

Tennys Sandgren blasts media in final shot at Aussie Open

Men’s Quarterfinals

Hyeon Chung, Republic of Korea, def. Tennys Sandgren, United States, 6-4, 7-6 (5), 6-3. Roger Federer (2), Switzerland, def. Tomas Berdych (19), Czech Republic, 7-6 (1), 6-3, 6-4.

Women’s Quarterfinals

Simona Halep (1), Romania, def. Karolina Pliskova (6), Czech Republic, 6-3, 6-2. Angelique Kerber (21), Germany, def. Madison Keys (17), United States, 6-1, 6-2.

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