Unseeded Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga said he was overwhelmed with a wave of emotion after his 7-5, 6-0, 7-6 win over 14th seed Mikhail Youzhny in the Australian Open quarter-finals on Tuesday.

- Bhupathi-Sania in mixed semis | Images

Tsonga reached his first Grand Slam semi-final and collapsed to the ground on Rod Laver Arena before leaping around pumping his arms with joy.

"It's like I wanted to cry, I wanted to smile, I wanted everything," he told reporters. "It's a lot of emotion. I had a lot of images in my head, and it's very big for me."

The world number 38 used his powerful serve and booming groundstrokes to upset ninth seed Andy Murray in the first round and he beat his compatriot and eighth seed Richard Gasquet to reach the last eight.

The 22-year-old Frenchman, who has never won a tour singles title, has overcome a succession of back and shoulder injuries and will meet second seed Rafael Nadal [Images] in the semi-finals at Melbourne Park.

"I have played him once before at the US Open," Tsonga said. "He is a different player but he has two arms and two legs like me. I will try to stay relaxed on court."

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