Upstart Tsonga whips Nadal to reach Aussie Open final

Unseeded Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga stunned world No. 2 Rafael Nadal on Thursday to reach the men's final at the 2008 Australian Open.

The 22-year-old Tsonga trounced the second-seeded Nadal 6-2, 6-3, 6-2 at Rod Laver Arena, as the surprising Frenchman will now appear in his first Grand Slam final against either top-seeded Roger Federer or No. 3 seed Novak Djokovic, who will clash here on Friday.

Tsonga routed Nadal in just under two hours, as the talented Frenchman launched 17 aces among a whopping 49 winners on Day 11 at Melbourne Park. He broke Nadal's capable serve five times, while the Spaniard failed to record even one break in a mere three break-point chances, which all came in one game in the final set.

The excitable Tsonga had the crowd roaring in his favor by displaying a mix of power and deft touch at the net.

The big-serving Frenchman jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first set and never looked back. He broke Nadal at love to close out the opening stanza and continued to roll from there.

Tsonga sent Nadal packing with one final ace to end the match and then proceeded to jump around the court in celebration.

"It's unbelievable, just amazing," Tsonga said. "Nothing can stop me today. It's like a dream. Every day is like a dream. I can't believe it's true."

The helpless Nadal recorded only 13 winners in the lopsided setback.

"He played unbelievable," Nadal said of Tsonga afterwards. "Congratulate him."

The 6-foot-2 Le Mans native Tsonga is now 1-1 lifetime against the three-time French Open champion and two-time Wimbledon runner-up Nadal, who beat the Frenchman in the third round at last year's U.S. Open.

The big-hitting Tsonga has also beaten the likes of eighth-seeded fellow Frenchman Richard Gasquet, ninth-seeded Brit Andy Murray and 14th-seeded Russian Mikhail Youzhny here in Melbourne.

Tsonga is the first French Aussie Open finalist since Arnaud Clement in 2001 and the first player to reach his first-ever ATP-level final at a Grand Slam event since Gustavo Kuerten turned the trick at the 1997 French Open.

On Friday, Federer will try to extend his Aussie Open winning streak to 20 matches when he battles Djokovic, who has yet to lose a set at this fortnight.

Federer is 5-1 lifetime against Djokovic, as the Swiss superstar won three-of- four  meetings last  season, with the  Serb's lone victory coming in a final in Toronto. Federer prevailed  against Djokovic in the fourth round at last year's Aussie Open and the final at the U.S. Open.

The  amazing Federer will play in a record 15th straight major semi and will try to  land  in his 11th straight  Grand Slam final, another record. The reigning Aussie  Open, Wimbledon and U.S. Open titlist owns 12 Grand Slam titles and is two  major victories  away from  equaling the  record held  by the  great Pete Sampras.

Djokovic,  the runner-up  at  last  year's U.S.  Open  and  a semifinalist  at Wimbledon  and the  French Open, will appear in his fourth straight Grand Slam semi.

The men's final will be staged here on Sunday night, with the winner taking home $1.2 million.