It's the final you have when you're not having a final.
With 41 grand slams between them, Serbia's Novak Djokovic and Spain's Rafael Nadal will meet in the quarter-finals of the French Open. The contest between two of the sports modern greats will be one to savour and in their twilight years, there's no guarantee of an encore.
"We have to really cherish this moment because I don't know how many times these guys could play here at Roland Garros," three-time French Open champion Mats Wilander told Eurosport.
World number one Djokovic and the fifth seed Nadal have played 58 times, with the Serb winning 30 of those encounters.
Fittingly, their first meeting was in the French Open quarter-finals in 2006. The Spaniard was leading 6-4, 6-4 when Djokovic retired.
Their most recent meeting was a four-set triumph for Djokovic in the semi-finals at Roland Garros last year.
"It's a huge challenge, probably the biggest one you can have at Roland Garros," the 35-year-old Djokovic said after his fourth-round win over Argentina's Diego Schwartzman.
No-one would argue with Djokovic on that point.
Nadal's future uncertain
Nadal is the undisputed king of clay with a record 13 French Open titles, but years of brutal shot-making have taken a toll.
Since losing to Djokovic at last year's French Open, the Spanish bull has battled foot and rib injuries. He turns 36 later this week and acknowledged the clock is ticking on his brilliant career.
"That's my situation now, I went through a tough process with my foot so I don't know what can happen in the near future with my career. That's why I'm trying to enjoy it as much as possible and fight as much as I can to keep living the dream," Nadal said after his fourth-round win over rising Canadian star Felix Auger-Aliassime.
"I'm just enjoying the fact that I am here for one more year.
"I'm being honest, every match that I play here I don't know if it's going to be my last match at Roland Garros in my tennis career."
Dominant Djokovic aiming for third French title
Djokovic won his round-of-16 match against Schwartzman in straight sets, while Nadal took almost four-and-a-half hours to overcome Auger-Aliassime in a five-setter. Nadal has spent more than two hours longer on court than Djokovic during this tournament.
"I'm glad that I didn't spend too much time on the court up to the quarter-finals; playing him at Roland Garros is always a physical battle along with everything else that happens," Djokovic said.
The "everything else" Djokovic refers to includes the crowd support that Nadal will have during their match, as the French fans embrace the Spaniard like one of their own.
Djokovic has attracted a mixture of jeers and cheers, but Wilander said the two-time French Open winner has used that to his advantage.
"He's using the energy of the crowd, they're not against Novak but they're for the underdog," Wilander said.
"And Novak is like 'I'm going to show you I'm number one in the world' with his body language.
"No-one is against Rafa in Paris, I don't care who you are, so I think the emotional battle is going to be unbelievable."
Djokovic motivated to level Nadal's slam tally
Nadal's Australian Open win earlier this year gave him his 21st grand slam title, putting him one ahead of the injured Roger Federer and Djokovic, who was missing in Melbourne due to his unvaccinated status.
The Serb will be motivated to draw level on the men's all-time list.
"Novak has looked unbelievably strong. He's looked determined, he's moving unbelievably well, he's playing as aggressive as I've ever seen him," Wilander said.
"At the same time, he throws in drop shots at the right time."
Whether he's being realistic or angling for the underdog tag, Nadal points out that Djokovic is coming off a win in the Italian Open and has not lost a set in his past nine matches.
"It's a big challenge for me … winning in straight sets every match, he will be confident," Nadal said.
"I know my situation and I accept it and I'm going to fight for it, that's it.
"We are in Roland Garros, it is my favourite place without a doubt.
"I'm going to try my best. I don't know what can happen but the only thing I can guarantee is I'm going to fight until the end."
