Rafael Nadal, Rafael Nadal vs Grigor Dimitrov LIVE STREAM
Tennis - Australian Open - Melbourne Park, Melbourne, Australia - 25/1/17 Spain's Rafael Nadal celebrates winning his Men's singles quarter-final match against Canada's Milos Raonic. Reuters / Issei Kato

Rafael Nadal, the 14-time Grand Slam champion, will square off with Bulgarian 15th seed Grigor Dimitrov in the second semi-final of the Australian Open 2017 at the Rod Laver Arena on Friday.

Nadal, seeking his first Grand Slam since the 2014 French Open, is just one win away from setting up a dream final against old sparring partner Roger Federer, who defeated Stan Wawrinka in five sets on Thursday. Nadal and Federer, arguably the greatest rivals in tennis history, haven't met in a Grand Slam final since the 2011 French Open when the Spaniard came through in four sets.

After his hard-fought victory on Thursday, Federer welcomed the possibility of a clash with his old foe, going as far as to call himself Nadal's No. 1 fan. "Rafa has presented me with the biggest challenge in the game. I'm his number one fan. His game is tremendous. He's an incredible competitor.

Rafael Nadal vs Grigor Dimitrov: Will Spaniard set up dream final with Roger Federer?

"I'm happy we had some epic battles over the years and of course it would be unreal to play here. I think both of us would never have thought we would be here playing in the final," said Federer, who is playing his first Grand Slam after a six-month injury layoff.

Nadal, dealing with injuries of his own, endured a torrid 2016 which saw him fail to reach a Grand Slam quarterfinal for the first time since 2004. However, the former World No. 1 has played sublime tennis over the past few weeks and is currently the odds-on favourite to win his 15th Grand Slam and surpass Pete Sampras in the list of most major championships.

The Spaniard hasn't had an easy ride to the final four. He needed five sets to get past rising German star Alex Zverev in the third round before having to contend with top 10 players such as French sixth seed Gael Monfils and third seed Canadian Milos Raonic in the fourth round and quarterfinal respectively. Nadal apparently shocked himself by beating big-serving Raonic in straight sets. "I feel very happy for my attitude. I hit some great passing shots. That's good news for me. When I make that happen, it's because I'm playing well," the 2009 Australian Open champion said after the quarterfinal.

Rafael Nadal vs Grigor Dimitrov betting odds: Bulgarian starts as underdog

According to the Telegraph, Nadal is a 2/5 favourite to come through in four sets against the big-serving Dimitrov. According to most betting websites, Nadal is also the favourite to win the Australian Open 2017 on Sunday and clinch his career 15th Grand Slam.

Meanwhile, 15th seed Grigor Dimitrov has been in blazing form and will pose a legitimate threat to Nadal. After registering dominating wins through his first few rounds, Dimitrov took down Denis Istomin, the man who upset Novak Djokovic earlier in the tournament, in straight sets, before breezing past Belgian David Goffin in the quarters. Even though Nadal leads the head-to-head match-up by a 7-1 margin, Dimitrov got the better of the Spaniard when they met in Shanghai last November.

"He is a player that has an unbelievable talent, unbelievable potential. He started the season playing unbelievable, no? I going to try to play my best because I know he's playing with high confidence," Nadal said about his quarterfinal opponent, per the official website of the Australian Open 2017. Will tennis fans get the desired Roger Federer vs Rafael Nadal dream matchup on Sunday? Or would the Bulgarian upset the applecart?

Watch Rafael Nadal vs Grigor Dimitrov live stream: How to watch

Time: 08:30 (GMT), 6:30 PM (AEST), 7:30 PM (AEDT), 3:30 AM (ET)
On TV: Channel 7, 7TWO and 7mate (Australia), ESPN 2 (USA)
Live Stream: 7 TENNIS app (Australia), Watch ESPN (USA), Official website (Global).