Brisbane, Australia (SportsNetwork.com) - Roger Federer and Lleyton Hewitt were both winners in the semifinals of the Brisbane International on Saturday.
After breezing through a quarterfinal match on Friday, Federer struggled to a 6-3, 6-7 (3-7), 6-3 victory over eighth-seeded Frenchman Jeremy Chardy.
The top-seeded Grand Slam champion took control of the match early, but struggled in the middle set. Federer bounced back with a convincing third set to reach the final.
It was the first ever meeting between Federer and Chardy.
Federer will face the Aussie veteran Hewitt, who defeated Japan's Kei Nishikori, 5-7, 6-4, 6-3.
Hewitt won the Brisbane title in 1998 and 2000, also finishing as the 1999 runner-up to Thomas Enqvist.
Federer owns an 18-8 advantage over Hewitt, but the 32-year-old veterans have not met since the Swiss superstar claimed a four-set triumph in a Davis Cup playoff back in 2011.
"It's been a good week so far, and I hope can play a good final (Sunday)," said Federer. "I look forward to that final with Lleyton. We know each other very well, so both of us will find our groove and know what to expect from one another."
Hewitt won the most recent ATP Tour matchup, stunning Federer in the final of the Wimbledon tune-up in Halle back in 2010. That victory ended a 15-match losing streak for Hewitt in the series and was the last of his 28 career ATP titles.
"You want to play against the best players, and obviously Roger and I have a good history and a lot of tough matches in the past in (Grand) Slams and Davis Cups and everything," said Hewitt. "He's been great obviously for this tournament and ticket sales and promoting tennis in Australia again. I'm going to enjoy it."
Federer is trying to start the 2014 season on a positive note after a lackluster 2013 campaign that featured only one title and no Grand Slam final appearances for the first time since 2002. He is 77-36 all-time in finals.
Hewitt owns a 28-16 mark in title matches. He lost in the Newport final last year in his only appearance in a final.
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