Australian Open finalist Petra Kvitova thinks “not very many people believed” she could return to the top of the sport after she suffered multiple injuries during a knife attack in 2016.

The Czech sustained damage to ligaments and tendons in her playing left hand when fighting off an intruder.

She says she “was not confident to be alone” in the aftermath of the attack.

Kvitova, 28, beat Danielle Collins 7-6 (7-2) 6-0 on Thursday to reach the women’s singles final in Melbourne.

She will become world number one for the first time if she defeats US Open champion Naomi Osaka on Saturday.

“It wasn’t only physically but mentally very tough,” she said of her recovery.

“It took me really a while to believe the people around me again and especially men, for sure.”

• Kvitova beats Collins to reach final
• Impressive Osaka holds off Pliskova comeback
• Skupski loses mixed doubles semi-final

Kvitova returned to tennis five months after the December 2016 attack at her home in the Czech Republic and Saturday’s match will be her first Grand Slam final since winning Wimbledon in 2014.

Speaking about the period after the attack, Kvitova said: “Those three months were very, very tough.

“I really needed to be strong and not really think too negatively about it, but of course those thoughts were there, as well. Yeah, it’s been a long journey.

“To be honest, I think not very many people believed that I can do that again, to stand on the court and play tennis and play on this level.”

The two-time Wimbledon champion also spoke about meeting Monica Seles last summer. Seles, then the world number one, was stabbed on court by a spectator during a 1993 tournament in Hamburg and was out of the sport for more than two years.

“Actually, she was the one who wanted to meet me, so it was just great and a big honour,” said Kvitova.

“I know that it affected her career a lot, especially (that) it happened on the court. So it’s a bit different, but it was such a nice feeling to meet someone who kind of went through same things and thoughts and everything.”

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Second seed Rafael Nadal ended Greek youngster Stefanos Tsitsipas’ captivating run at the Australian Open to reach his fifth final in Melbourne.

Nadal, 32, was in devastating form as he beat the 20-year-old 14th seed 6-2 6-4 6-0 in one hour and 46 minutes.

The Spaniard cracked 28 winners, breaking Tsitsipas’ serve six times and only facing one break point himself.

He will play either top seed Novak Djokovic or France’s Lucas Pouille in Sunday’s final – they meet on Friday.

Nadal, who won at Melbourne Park in 2009, is one more win away from winning all four Grand Slams at least twice – a feat which no other man has achieved in the Open era.

Serbia’s Djokovic is also chasing a slice of history as he bids for a record seventh men’s singles title, although he must first beat Grand Slam semi-final debutant Pouille.

You can follow the match on the BBC Sport website and BBC Radio 5 live from 08:30 GMT.

More soon.

• Nadal v Tsitsipas semi-final – as it happened
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US Open champion Naomi Osaka reached back-to-back Grand Slam finals with a hard-fought win over Czech seventh seed Karolina Pliskova at the Australian Open.

The Japanese fourth seed won 6-2 4-6 6-4 and will face Petra Kvitova, another Czech, in Saturday’s showpiece.

Osaka, 21, hit 15 aces and 56 winners in a confident display.

The semi-final was played under the Rod Laver Arena roof as temperatures touched 40C in Melbourne.

Osaka hit another forehand winner to give herself a match point at 40-30, shouting “come on” as she looked up to the sky and tried to compose herself, then hit what she thought was an 111mph ace down the middle.

After it was called out, Osaka challenged and clasped her hands together in hope as she watched the replay – and was left celebrating when Hawk-Eye showed the ball had clipped the line.

Asked about her feelings when Pliskova won the second set, Osaka said: “I kind of expected it a little because I’ve played her so many times and she has beaten me more than I’ve beaten her. I told myself to regroup and I managed to win.

“It’s just experience playing matches like this. I was so scared serving second serves, I was like ‘oh, my god, please’ and somehow I made it so I guess that’s experience.”

The final will see Osaka and 28-year-old Kvitova, who has reached her first Grand Slam final since being stabbed in December 2016, battling for the world number one ranking.

Defeat ended 26-year-old Pliskova’s hopes of reaching her second Grand Slam final and setting up a first all-Czech final against her Fed Cup team-mate.

Pliskova admitted her remarkable comeback against Serena Williams on Wednesday may have taken its toll, saying: “It’s not only that the match yesterday was tough, but also it was emotionally tough, too.

“I was missing maybe a little bit of power. But she played an unbelievable match, maybe the best in her life. I don’t think she can repeat a match like this.”

• Kvitova reaches first Grand Slam final since stabbing
• Ruthless Nadal beats Tsitsipas to reach final

Osaka emulates Capriati feat

Osaka won her maiden major at the US Open in September, although that victory was overshadowed by opponent Serena Williams’s furious row with umpire Carlos Ramos.

Now the fourth seed has the chance to savour another triumph in the first Grand Slam of the 2019 season.

Osaka has become the first female player to reach the final at her next Slam following a maiden major win since American Jennifer Capriati in 2001.

She produced a bold performance from the start against the big-hitting Pliskova, hitting 16 winners and breaking serve twice on her way to clinching the opening set in 32 minutes.

The early advantage boded well for the Japanese player, having won her past 58 matches after taking the first set.

Yet Pliskova, who fought back from four match points down to beat Serena Williams little over 24 hours earlier, played more aggressively in the second set and was rewarded with a decisive break in the 10th game.

Osaka only landed one first serve and made two unforced errors as she relinquished her serve to love.

Pliskova had finally found her rhythm, and then threatened to break Osaka in the opening game of the decider.

Osaka crucially dug in to save three break points, before breaking to love in the following game and then fighting off another break point at 4-3 with an ace.

That left her another hold away from becoming the first Japanese woman to reach the Australian Open final and she upped the ante again from 30-30 to seal her place in another Grand Slam showpiece.

Analysis

2013 Wimbledon champion Marion Bartoli on Radio 5 live sports extra

The match between Pliskova and Osaka was the best women’s match I’ve ever seen.

That was incredible in terms of level – 58 winners for Osaka and only 20 unforced errors. I was impressed by Pliskova’s resilience – she should have lost in two sets. She kept on finding solutions.

Now it’s two players playing at their peak facing each other in the final – Petra Kvitova and Naomi Osaka.

If I have to pick a favourite for the final then I will go for Osaka.

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Petra Kvitova reached her first Grand Slam final since being stabbed, beating unseeded American Danielle Collins under the roof after extreme heat at the Australian Open.

Czech Kvitova, seeded eighth, dominated a tie-break to win a tight first set, in which the roof was closed at 4-4.

The two-time Wimbledon champion, 28, controlled the second as Collins, 25, grew frustrated.

Kvitova won 7-6 (7-2) 6-0 and will meet Naomi Osaka or Karolina Pliskova.

Victory for Pliskova against the US Open champion later on Thursday would set up an all-Czech final for the first time in a women’s singles at a Grand Slam.

A vicious forehand winner sealed victory on Kvitova’s first match point as she reached her first Australian Open final.

“This means everything, that’s why I work really hard – to be in a final at a Grand Slam,” she said.

“Finally, I made it deep into a major. Whatever happens in the final I am very happy.”

If Kvitova goes on to win the final, she will beat Osaka or Pliskova in the battle to replace Romania’s Simona Halep as the world number one.

• Skupski loses mixed doubles semi-final
• Live scores, schedule and results

Can Kvitova cap fairytale story?

Kvitova had not reached a Grand Slam semi-final since being attacked in a robbery at her home in December 2016.

Now the former world number two has the chance to cap a fairytale story by winning a third major title on Saturday.

The left-hander said she was “fortunate to be alive”, requiring surgery on the hand which she predominantly plays with before returning to the sport five months later.

She has started this year superbly, winning a 26th career title in Sydney and extending her winning streak to 11 matches here in Melbourne.

But her big serve came under pressure first in the opening set, Collins – who had never won a Grand Slam main draw match before this tournament – taking a second break point with a brilliant dipping cross-court return for a 3-2 lead.

Kvitova hit straight back with a break in the following game as the American’s service game dipped, leading to a 41% first-serve percentage at the end of the first set.

Following the roof closure at the end of the eighth game, Collins started to grow frustrated and had two heated discussions with umpire Carlos Ramos either side of losing the tie-break.

She seemed to lose focus in the second set, winning just 12 points – four on Kvitova’s serve – as the Czech needed just 32 more minutes to wrap up victory.

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‘I was happier than the fans about the roof closure’

The conditions were a key factor in the first women’s semi-final as temperatures were expected to reach around 40C in Melbourne on Thursday.

The Australian Open has introduced a new extreme heat policy this year, with a heat stress scale now indicating when a break should be introduced and play being stopped.

If the index reaches four, then the players are allowed a 10-minute break between the second and third sets.

If a five is recorded, the tournament referee can decide to close the roof on Laver and suspend matches on outside courts.

Before the match, the index read 3.9 and meant the roof remained open.

But it became quickly apparent that the index was going to rise quickly during the match between Kvitova and Collins.

At the end of the eighth game of the first set, umpire Ramos announced the roof was going to be closed because the scale had hit five – leading to huge cheers from the crowd.

Kvitova, who has struggled in heat in the past, won eight of the next 10 games – plus the tie-break – on her way to victory.

“In the second set I was happier than the fans when the roof closed,” Kvitova said.

“The first set I was very tired and making errors. I couldn’t have a full swing and be more relaxed like I was before so I was glad my game came in the tie-break.

“I like playing indoors and I think that helped me a little bit.”