Cilic beats Edmund to reach Australian open final

Croatia's Marin Cilic on Thursday beat Briton Kyle Edmund 6-2, 7-6 (7-4), 6-2 to qualify for the Australian Open final.

It took Cilic, a first-time Australian Open finalist, two hours and 18 minutes to defeat the 49th seed Edmund at the semifinals, reports Efe.

"I just stayed mentally focused and tried to play every single point. It was extremely crucial in the tiebreak to keep that pressure," the 29-year-old Cilic said.

"Today was a different intensity than my match with Rafa. I think overall I'm feeling really good. Now I have two days off so it's going to be a nice one on Sunday," he added.

The sixth seed, who is to move up to a career-high ranking of No. 3 in the ATP rankings, defeated world No. 1 Rafael Nadal in the quarterfinals 3-6, 6-3, 6-7 (5-7), 6-2, 2-0 after the Spaniard quit following an injury during their match.

In the final of the season's first Grand Slam, Cilic is due to play either Switzerland's Roger Federer, the reigning Australian Open champion, or South Korea's Hyeon Chung.

Federer, widely regarded as the greatest men's tennis player to ever live, and Chung, a relative unknown before this year's Australian Open, face off in a classic David verses Goliath match on Friday.

--IANS

sam/mr