Roger Federer the favourite: Is this irresistible dream really coming true at the Australian Open?

It was said in slightly-less-than-totally-serious tones prior to the start of the Australian Open: wouldn’t it be incredible if Roger Federer won another Grand Slam? Would it be truly remarkable if he ends up as the Australian Open champion for a fifth time?

Well, the prospect of Federer jumping in the Yarra River (okay, maybe not that bit!) after a famous Melbourne triumph now appears very good indeed. Almost surreal – can this really be happening? - good.

The legendary Swiss has, of course, not won a Grand Slam since 2012 at Wimbledon when he tearfully defeated an equally, but more famously, tearful Andy Murray.

Such is the esteem to which he is held, the pre-tournament odds of Federer winning the Australian Open were 16-1 - the equivalent to saying he had zero chance while still being vaguely respectful to a true legend of the game.

Remember, it’s not just the fact that the 35-year-old has not won a Grand Slam in nearly five years: he also announced on July 26 last year that would miss the remainder of the season to recover from his knee injury.

The fact that he now finds himself the favourite – albeit as a result of the shock defeats suffered by Murray and Novak Djokovic – is frankly astonishing.

In reaching a 13th Australian Open semi-final after a six-month lay-off, Federer has not only defied his doubter; he appears to have baffled himself given the way he joked about the moment he “did not see an easy draw at all” when his path was established.

Only Jimmy Connors has reached more semi-finals at a single Slam than Federer in Australia, with 14 in New York, which makes his run all the more special.

As Eurosport analyst Miles Maclagan noted, Federer has looked "very, very sharp" so far Down Under with the lay-off seemingly having a reinvigorating effect on his play. "That's why we love watching Federer," Maclagan purred as he pored over footage of the Swiss dismantling Zverev's game in imperious form.

The four-time champion in Melbourne boasts a head-to-head record of 18-3 against his compatriot Wawrinka. While ‘Stan the Man’ is rated as the second favourite, he will back himself to end Federer’s romantic run.

Wawrinka could be forgiven for feeling a touch of disrespect coming his way given Federer’s new status as the tournament favourite, despite only being seeded 17th. Not only did he triumph at this venue in 2014, but he won the last Grand Slam on Tour in New York and has three to his name over the last three years alone.

Wawrinka even joked after his tense - and tetchy - win over Jo-Wilfried Tsonga that he hoped "at least someone would cheer for him" against his countryman.

But there’s a clear reason why Federer is the bookies’ favourite: almost everyone, sadly for Wawrinka, wants to see arguably the greatest player of all time return with one final Slam. With the top two players in the world, Murray and Djokovic, having boarded early flights, it’s an almost irresistible thought for fans everywhere.

People want to believe Federer can still beat Wawrinka; they want to believe he can win an 18th Grand Slam; they want to believe that he can recover from a serious injury to seize back the throne.

"My daughters said, 'Please don't lose daddy. We don't want to leave Australia,'" Federer revealed to Jim Courier after his quarter-final victory over the thoroughly outclassed Mischa Zverev.

The roar from the crowd on Rod Laver Arena confirmed that this sentiment was very much shared by the vast majority of tennis fans. With just David Goffin, Grigor Dimitrov, Rafael Nadal, Milos Raonic and Wawrinka left in the draw, there is no reason at all that this should not happen.

Ahead of his 41st Grand Slam semi-final – yes, that ridiculous statistic is worth pausing to think about for a few moments… - Federer must have begun to believe that this wonderful dream may become a reality. With Venus Williams joining her sister Venus in also defying age, injuries and the odds on the women’s side, 2017 is already a stunning year for tennis.

The thought of Federer holding the Norman Brookes Challenge Cup aloft again this Sunday is irresistible. Incredibly, it is also now realistic.