MELBOURNE, Australia — There have certainly been better Australia Day tennis celebrations at Melbourne Park. There have undoubtedly been much longer Australia Day tennis celebrations at Melbourne Park.

Roger Federer did his part at age 36, but the next generation was unable to keep pace. Though Hyeon Chung was able to defeat Novak Djokovic and two other seeded players in this Australian Open, he was unable to get through the second set against Federer in the semifinals.

Hampered by a deep blister on his left foot, Chung, the emerging 21-year-old South Korean star, retired with Federer leading, 6-1, 5-2.

“I think I did the right thing,” Chung said after the match. “It really hurts. I can’t walk normal.”

Federer and Chung, in their first meeting, played for only 62 minutes. That was more than long enough for Federer to identify and exploit Chung’s weak points: his forehand under pressure, his first serve, his variety.

There is no dishonor in any of that. Chung has years ahead of him to become a more complete threat, and his movement dropped off after the opening games, when he was sliding, Djokovic-style into the corners.

Meanwhile, the second-seeded Federer continues to bust through mental and physical barriers and will face another member of the tennis establishment, No. 6 seed Marin Cilic of Croatia, in Sunday’s final. Federer said it was bittersweet to reach the final in the way he did.

“I knew he was having issues with his feet going into it,” he said of Chung. “But I knew he also had issues going into the match against Novak.

“He handled that very well, the same against Sandgren,” he added, referring to Chung’s four-set victory over the American Tennys Sandgren in the quarterfinals.

“For me, I was trying to block that away and just play Chung himself,” Federer said. “If he had no issues, well, that’s normal. If he has issues, well, bad luck for him, and I’ll take advantage of it.”

Federer said he believed Chung was “going to be a very good player,” but he resisted making predictions.

“I don’t like to put too much pressure on players by saying they’re going to win everything because I don’t think it’s fair,” he said. “A lot of experts, such-called experts, said I was going to be world No. 1 and win everything. In a way it’s funny and cool, but it’s not so cool in hindsight. Afterwards, anything you achieve is normal. I find it disappointing. Getting to No. 1, winning Grand Slams, winning Masters 1000s, it ain’t normal. It’s extraordinary.”