Roger Federer, 2017 Wimbledon
Tennis - Wimbledon - London, Britain - July 12, 2017 Switzerland’s Roger Federer celebrates winning the quarter final match against Canada’s Milos Raonic Reuters /Andrew Couldridge

World No. 5 Roger Federer will face World No. 14 Tomas Berdych in the semi-final of the 2017 Wimbledon on Friday. With defending champion Andy Murray, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal eliminated, Federer is the only remaining member from the sport's storied Big Four.

America's Sam Qurrey and Czech World No. 7 Marin Cilic would square off in the first semi-final on Centre Court. If Federer can get through to Sunday's final, he would start as the overwhelming favourite to win a historic eighth Wimbledon championship and 19th overall Grand Slam title.

Federer, 35, owns a career 18-6 head-to-head record against Berdych. The Swiss Master got the better of the Czech journeyman on two separate occasions this year, the Round of 32 at the Australian Open followed by the quarter-final of the Miami Masters. Federer also owns dominating records against Querrey (3-0) and Cilic (6-1), the other remaining semi-finalists. Simply put, Federer is expected to prevail on Sunday.

The odds are stacked against him. But Berdych is not overwhelmed by the big stage. “He's a really exceptional tennis player... I think he's the greatest of them all. It's a great challenge to actually have the opportunity to play him. I'm probably in the best possible situation I can be right now. I had a pretty good run so far... Really, I cannot be in a better position before Friday's match,” Berdych said.

While avenging last year's semi-final loss to Milos Raonic Wednesday, Federer improved his 2017 record to 24 wins and two losses. After starting the year as the World No. 17, he went on a 19-1 start that included victories at the Australian Open, Miami Open and Indian Well Masters. He sat out the European clay-court season before returning to peak form in the pre-Wimbledon grass-court event in Halle.

"I could never really play quite so freely last year just because (now) I'm more focused on how the knee's behaving, rather than how I need to hit my forehand or backhand or what's not going to be good for my opponent. This year, I'm just a normal tennis player again, where I can focus on tactics. I think that's the difference. I'm playing very well. I'm rested. I'm fresh. I'm confident, too. Then great things do happen," Federer said after becoming the oldest Wimbledon semi-finalist since 1974.

Since 2002, the Big 4 comprising of Federer (7), Nadal (2), Djokovic (3) Andy Murray (2) have won every Wimbledon crown. Federer acknowledged that it's a pleasant surprise to enter the semi-final stage as the Last Man Standing from the Big 4. "It's nice to see different guys, maybe, but I'm happy that my dream run continues and we'll now see what happens next." Roger Federer vs Tomas Berdych live streaming, 2017 Wimbledon live streaming and tennis live streaming info follows.

Roger Federer vs Tomas Berdych live stream: Watch Wimbledon online
When: Second match on Centre Court, Friday, July 14
Start time: 1 p.m. (Local Time, BST), 10 p.m. (AEST), 8 a.m. (ET)
On TV: Fox Sports (Australia), ESPN (USA)
Live Stream: Tennis TV (Global), Foxtel Play / Foxtel Go (Australia), WatchESPN (USA)

RELATED STORIES