Rafael Nadal vs Roger Federer live stream: Watch Australian Open 2017 final online, start time, betting odds

Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, arguably the greatest rivals in tennis history, will collide at a Grand Slam for the first time in over three years during Sunday's grand finale of the 2017 Australian Open at the Rod Laver Arena.

The living legends haven't met in a Grand Slam final since the 2012 Roland Garros which Nadal won in four sets to improve his head-to-head record in major tournaments to 7-2 against his archival. Since that French Open final, they clashed in two Aussie Open semi-finals matches in 2012 and 2014, both of which were won by Nadal.

Despite Nadal's impeccable 9-2 Grand Slam head-to-head record against the 17-time champion (23-11 overall), analysts and odds makers expect an epic contest that will very likely be decided in five gruelling sets. It's fair to suggest that Nadal starts the match as the favourite but the Spaniard's recent injury history make him a little more vulnerable as compared to his heydays.

Rafael Nadal vs Roger Federer Australian Open 2017: Last Grand Slam final ever?

Both players, in the twilight of their careers, have admitted that they didn't expect to get this deep into the tournament and likely befitted from the early ousters of top seeds Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray, the tandem that had got the better of both Nadal and Federer in recent years. Federer, who hasn't beaten Nadal for a Grand Slam title since the 2007 Wimbledon, is unwilling to put additional pressure on himself in pursuit of Major Title No. 18. "I've got to have a sort of a nothing-to-lose mentality. I know this court (in Australia) allows me to play a certain game against Rafa that I cannot do on centre court at the French Open," Federer said ahead of Sunday's showdown, via BBC.

The Swiss master acknowledged that he was passive in his approach against Nadal during their earlier matches. "If you're looking at that (head-to-head record), it's better to have not played. I wasn't fighting the right way (against Nadal). I think that was the effect that the French Open loss left on me. Now it's a different time. A lot of time has gone by. I know this court allows me to play a certain game against Rafa that I cannot do on centre court at the French Open."

During a conversation with ESPN, tennis hall-of-famer Pam Shriver opined that Sunday's match could have significant historic implications. "This could be the match that a lot of people use to decide who really is the greatest of all time. Does Roger win this magical one at 35? Or does Rafa add to his ridiculous head-to-head edge and narrow the gap?"

Rafael Nadal vs Roger Federer betting odds: Spaniard favourite to win Grand Slam No. 15

According to Odds Checker, Nadal is currently a 4/5 favourite to win and capture his 15th Grand Slam title. If Rafael Nadal can capture his second Australian Open title, he will become only the second player in history to win all four Grand Slams on two occasions.

Even a mentally weary and physically debilitated Nadal found time for nostalgia when asked about the romantic final after his win over Dimitrov. After surviving an epic five-setter against Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov in the semi-final, a gassed Nadal admitted that playing Federer in a Grand Slam final hasn't crossed his mind in several years. "(It's) special to play with Roger again in a final of a grand slam. I cannot lie. (It's) great. (It is) exciting for me and for both of us that we still there and we still fighting for important events. So, that's important for us, I think. That's very special," Nadal told Jim Courier during the post-match interview.

Watch Rafael Nadal vs Roger Federer 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)