Rafael Nadal celebrates Tuesday after defeating Tomas Berdych during their quarterfinal at the Australian Open.

MELBOURNE, Australia — A dominating win by Roger Federer in his 1,000th career match and a more difficult workout for Rafael Nadal set up a rare Grand Slam marquee semifinal between the former top-ranked players.

Four-time Australian Open champion Federer advanced to his ninth straight semifinal at Melbourne Park with a 6-4, 6-3, 6-2 quarterfinal win Tuesday over Juan Martin del Potro, the man who beat him for the U.S. Open title in 2009.

Federer’s 1,000th match was similar to most in his career — no-nonsense, dominating from the start and some incredible shots.

“It’s a lot of matches and a lot tennis,” said Federer, a record 16-time Grand Slam champion. “Either I have been around for a long time or I’m extremely fit. You decide which way you want to describe it. But I’m happy.”

In an often tempestuous night match at Rod Laver Arena, Nadal advanced with a tough 6-7 (5), 7-6 (6), 6-4, 6-3 win over Tomas Berdych.

“Happy with how I finished match physically, I was able to keep running with high intensity,” Nadal said.

Federer and Nadal — they were ranked 1-2 for many years — have been on opposite halves of the draw since the 2005 French Open. That was the last time the pair met in a Grand Slam semifinal, won that year by Nadal in four sets.

Defending women’s champion Kim Clijsters, still dealing with a left ankle injury, advanced to an Australian Open semifinal against third-seeded Victoria Azarenka by beating No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki 6-3, 7-6 (4) Tuesday. Clijsters’ victory ensured that Wozniacki would lose the top ranking she has held for most of the last 15 months.

Azarenka beat No. 8 Agnieszka Radwanska 6-7 (0), 6-0, 6-2. Azarenka is one of three women who could finish at No. 1 in Melbourne — Maria Sharapova and Petra Kvitova are the others.

In the late match, Nadal saved four set points in the first set, including one on an amazing crosscourt passing shot on the 29th point of a rally. But Berdych held firm to win the ensuing tiebreaker.

During the tiebreaker, a Berdych shot landed out, and Nadal returned it, then challenged the call. Chair umpire Carlos Bernardes wouldn’t allow the challenge because Nadal hadn’t immediately stopped play, but Nadal responded by saying he didn’t challenge immediately because he thought the linesman had called it out.

The replay showed the ball was out.

“Carlos, I’ll tell you something, you never get one right, not one correct overrule,” Nadal said in Spanish. “You’re not here as a spectator. You know that ball was out.”