Edmund to emulate Fed after Open success

British youngster Kyle Edmund's ranking is set to soar into the mid-20s despite his loss to Marin Cilic in the Australian Open semi-finals.

Britain's Kyle Edmund.

Kyle Edmund's best run at a grand slam could earn him a place in the world's top 25 players. (AAP)

Vanquished semi-finalist Kyle Edmund hopes to emulate Roger Federer and embrace the attention that will follow his barnstorming Australian Open campaign.

The unseeded Briton's dream summer came to an end on Thursday night as world No.6 Marin Cilic booked his spot in the final at Melbourne Park with a 6-2 7-6 (7-4) 6-2 victory.

Bidding to become just the fourth Brit to make a grand slam final in the Open era - and the third at Melbourne Park - Edmund was overpowered in the biggest match of his career.

The 23-year-old took a medical timeout after the first set and later confirmed he had been hampered by an injury, although he declined to elaborate on his ailment.

A victory for Edmund would have propelled him above injured star Andy Murray as the No.1-ranked British male.

But while Murray will remain king, Edmund's profile is certain to rise after a deeply impressive campaign capped off by victory over third seed Grigor Dimitrov in the quarter-finals.

Aware that attention can be both a blessing and a curse, Edmund says he has learnt a thing or two from watching unflappable Swiss maestro Federer go about his business.

"If you embrace it, I think you cope with it better," Edmund said.

"It's important to realise that I probably don't get as much now as a lot of other people will get, so you have to realise there's always someone else dealing with a lot more.

"And you know the top guys like Roger and that, they have been doing it their whole life. They crack on and embrace it.

"It's good to learn from them."

Edmund's semi-final exit at Melbourne Park is his deepest run at a grand slam, exceeding his fourth-round finish at the 2016 US Open.

The world No.49's ranking is projected to rise to the mid-20s - a career high - by the end of the Australian Open.

The South Africa-born youngster can count Cilic, who will face titleholder Roger Federer or South Korean prodigy Hyeon Chung in Sunday night's championship decider, among his many admirers.

"He is playing great tennis," the Croatian said.

"Had extremely tough run to the semis, had a couple of five-setters and a couple of four-setters as well.

"Definitely it left some scars on his body - I can feel that too - but he's got a bright future and we will be seeing him around a lot."


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Source: AAP



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