Djokovic, Wawrinka set for slugfest

— -- MELBOURE, Australia -- If you think it's hard to break Novak Djokovic's spirit, just try to break his serve.

Through five rounds, the world No. 1 and four-time Australian Open champ has safely held 73 of his 74 service games -- including 52 straight as he heads into his semifinal tilt again Stan Wawrinka.

So to recap, Djokovic is:

• The world's top player
• A four-time Australian Open champ
• Producing a near-untouchable serve

Game, set and ... not so fast.

Unlike Caroline Wozniacki, Djokovic has not run a marathon, but given the Serb's previous encounters against Wawrinka, he'd better be prepared to run at least 26.2 miles come Friday night in Melbourne.

His past three Grand Slam matches against Wawrinka have been frenetically fun; each has gone five sets, and we're not talking your garden-variety five-setters, but rather high-octane slugfests that left even the wary onlookers gasping for air.

"You need to get yourself in the right state of mind for the matches like this, because this is now semifinals of a Grand Slam and you're playing a top player," Djokovic said. "There is no going back now. It's the time to perform the best you can."

Two years ago at the Aussie Open, Djokovic needed just over five hours to beat Wawrinka 1-6, 7-5, 6-4, 6-7 (5), 12-10 in the fourth round. Djokovic then held off Wawrinka and his barrage of 57 winners a few months later in a 4-hour, 9-minute five-set tussle at the US Open. Finally last season, Wawrinka got some retribution in yet another marathon slog, winning a 9-7-in-the-fifth skirmish back here at Melbourne Park before, of course, going on to snag the title.

The bottom line is that there are no creative solutions when it comes down to it. Wawrinka and Djokovic will come to the court properly hydrated and with extra padding in their shoes in preparation for a long, draining encounter, but also with an understanding that this will be nothing short of a prizefight.

"As I mentioned before, I'm ready for the battle," Djokovic said. "When we played last three Grand Slam matches, they were the finals stages of a Grand Slam, semifinals, quarterfinals. Grand Slams are the tournaments where you want to perform your best. I'm sure we both are very much aware of that fact, and it's why we get to play on a high level against each other and we push each other to the limit in a way. It's a very physical battle, as well. But I haven't had too many long matches during this tournament. I'm ready for it."

As is Wawrinka. Long gone are his days as an understudy to you know who. Fellow Swiss Roger Federer, who monopolized the spotlight for years, and rightfully so, hasn't won a Grand Slam title since 2012 and was eliminated here in the third round earlier this week. For his part, Wawrinka came into the Aussie as a first-time defending champion, a feat that while laudable, is also one that could weigh him down under the burden of expectation.

And in a sense, you could forgive Wawrinka for feeling the pressure. Last season, he wasn't exactly the foremost name on our minds when we thought of Grand Slam champions. He took the field by surprise, becoming the first player to defeat the top two seeds en route to a major title since Sergi Bruguera at the 1993 French Open. And since then, Wawrinka has rooted himself atop the rankings; he hasn't fallen south of No. 4 since his title-winning run. But is all this winning too much for his own good?

"I know that now I have a Grand Slam at home," Wawrinka said. "I have the Grand Slam trophy. I won the Davis Cup also. I have the confidence from that. I know I can make it. I trust my game. I trust myself on the court even when we start to play semifinal or final in Grand Slam."

It should also be pointed out that Wawrinka is coming off his best performance of the tournament with a telling win against No. 5 seed Kei Nishikori in the quarterfinals. The Swiss belted 20 aces and was broken once. He's dropped just one set, which just happens to be more than Djokovic has lost.

As you can imagine, Djokovic attributes a good amount of his fine form to his newest weapon, his near-infallible serve. The world No. 1 openly acknowledges that's one of the reasons he employed Boris Becker, a serving savant in his own right, a little more than a year ago.

"Definitely he's got his contribution there, no question about it," Djokovic said after his quarterfinal win over Milos Raonic. "Serve was one of the tasks, one of the things that we wanted to improve. I know I can't serve as fast as Milos, but I'm trying to use the angles, the accuracy, align myself to have some free points with that serve. That's what I used well during this 10 days now so far."

Hard to believe Djokovic, who's hardly venerable at the age of 27, has been around long enough, but a win against Wawrinka would be the Serb's 49th Down Under, good enough for third place in the Open era, trailing only Federer (75) and his coach, Stefan Edberg (56).

Someday Djokovic will look back on all his exploits and relish in his success, but for now the Serb wants more, much more.

"Of course it feels good," Djokovic said. "It never gets old being in the last four of the Grand Slam. Sometimes, you know, obviously people around you think this is something that is normal from a top player, to reach that final stage. You're expected to perform well and reach semifinals of a Grand Slam.

"But I don't take anything for granted. I try to be aware that there are thousands of players around the world who are fighting equally as I am to be in this position. So that keeps me grounded, and I try to enjoy every moment and work hard for what I have."