Andy's quarter-final match against Rafa Nadal on Tuesday (8:30am GMT) promises to be THE pick of the last eight in Melbourne, not least because it's 25 years since a Brit made it this far.
No sooner had both players finished their fourth round matches, and they were in the press room deliberating on previous clashes and their relative prospects.
It was Andy's fourth round loss to the Spaniard here back in 2007 that elevated his profile to a new level, and whilst some rivals have an edginess to them there's nothing but respect between these two.
Asked if he thought Andy had anything to prove, Nadal almost bristled in response.
"I don't think Andy have to show nothing to nobody," he said. "He have enough results to be confident of winning a Grand Slam. He can win, he can lose. But, anyway, he gonna have a lot of chances to win a Grand Slam, and he gonna do for sure."
Whilst Rafa's press conference had a more general focus ("He's a big player and he's a winner"), Andy's offered a bit more insight into how you go about playing Nadal.
"It changes every time," said Andy. "You have to kind of adjust to the match. I've played him indoors, hard courts, clay courts, and grass - each time it's a bit different"
"(I've) played him some really good matches (against him) on hard courts. I think I've got some tactics that work well against him"
As to what those tactics might be, we can turn the clock back three years to the 2007 Aussie Open, and to Andy's press conference after he lost that close five-setter.
"It’s not hard to come up with a game plan against him," said Andy at the time. "It’s quite obvious: don’t leave the ball in the middle of the court to his forehand."
Three years on, and Nadal's still punishing short balls of course.
But perhaps what made that match most interesting was this insight afterwards: "I learned I can hit the ball much harder than I thought, consistently."
"I hit some huge shots," Andy continued. "I did miss a few but I was trying to play more aggressive than I normally do. I think I showed I’m not just a counter puncher. I was the aggressor for much of the match, hitting a lot of winners, and although I was making some unforced errors, that’s what you have to do against him. I definitely realised that."
The scene is set for what we hope is another classic, albeit with a different outcome to 2007
|