Melbourne (AFP)

So there will be neither the world No.1 Ashleigh Barty, nor the No.3 Simona Halep on Saturday in the Australian Open final, but a young newcomer Sofia Kenin (15th) and a former winner returned to the most high level, Garbine Muguruza (32nd).

On Thursday, in overwhelming heat (39 ° C), Kenin went for a 7-6 (8/6), 7-5 victory over Barty, yet noisily supported by his audience, and Muguruza won a revenge on Halep 7-6 (10/8), 7-5.

"It's not a shock, it's a dream come true. I always dreamed of it. I played, knowing that I was in the semi-finals ... it was just great," said Kenin.

She is the first American, apart from Serena Williams, to make the final in Melbourne since Lindsay Davenport in 2005. She is also the youngest finalist since 2008 and will enter the World Top 10 on Monday.

Before putting an end to the epic of Ons Jabeur, the first player in the Arab world to reach the quarterfinals in Grand Slam, Kenin had stopped in the knockout stages his compatriot Coco Gauff, youngest player in the table (15 years old) and who had herself eliminated Venus Williams in the 1st round as well as the defending champion Naomi Osaka (4th) in the 3rd.

And this time, it's the world No.1 that Kenin beat. An Australian on whose shoulders all the hopes of a nation rested. Maybe too heavy to wear at 23.

Although she refuted this pressure, Barty appeared relieved at a press conference, smiling for the first time since the start of the fortnight, with a baby, her niece, on her lap.

- "Life is Beautiful" -

"Her name is Olivia. Yes, life is good ... she put a smile on my face as soon as I left the court," said Barty who did not look for excuses for his defeat, preferring " return to Caesar what is Caesar "and recognize that Kenin" deserved his victory ".

It had so far had the best result in Melbourne the 2nd round reached last year. In the Grand Slam, she had risen to the knockout stages at Roland Garros, also last season.

"And now it's the final. It's something else, it's unreal," said the player, born 21 years ago in Moscow and who arrived in New York as a child before moving to Florida with her family. .

Last American still in the running out of the 22 entered in the main draw of this first Grand Slam tournament of the year, she will face the Spanish Garbine Muguruza (32nd).

Despite playing conditions bordering on the triggering of the "Extreme Heat Protocol", which notably plans to close the roof of the Rod Laver Arena, the 26-year-old player has found the resources to resist Halep and finally dismiss it.

- "48 hours" -

"I have 48 hours to get over it", underlined the former world N.1 at the end of this 1:45 game played open roof while the junior and wheelchair tennis matches in progress on unprotected grounds had been suspended.

"We train our whole career for these moments on these courts!" Added Muguruza, double Grand Slam winner (Roland-Garros 2016 and Wimbledon 2017) but had not reached the final since Wimbledon 2017.

So much so that she was not even seeded in Melbourne, for the first time in a Grand Slam since Roland Garros 2014 where she had reached the quarterfinals by being 35th in the world.

At the Australian Open, Muguruza had never exceeded quarters (2017).

Thursday, against another former world N.1, the Spaniard showed great fighting spirit to never give in.

The Romanian, finalist in Melbourne in 2018, nevertheless obtained 4 set balls in the first round.

In the men's table, the 50th duel between Novak Djokovic, defending champion and in very good shape, and Roger Federer, physically reached, started at 7.45 p.m. (09.45 French / 08.45 GMT). It's a place in the final that is played.

© 2020 AFP