Rafael Nadal has outplayed his rival, Novak Djokovic, in a four-set thriller to reach the French Open semi-finals for the 15th time.
In the 59th career meeting between the two tennis greats — the most involving any two players in the Open era — the momentum ebbed and flowed for more than four hours on Court Philippe-Chatrier before Nadal prevailed, 6-2, 4-6, 6-2, 7-6 (7/4).
Nadal narrowed Djokovic’s head-to-head lead to 30-29, and the Spaniard is now two matches away from extending his record for grand slam title victories to 22.
The loss ended the top-seeded Djokovic’s bid for a second consecutive title in Paris. It also means that Djokovic remains behind Nadal in the grand slam count, with 20.
Nadal improved to 110-3 for his career at Roland Garros. Two of those losses came against Djokovic, including in last year’s semi-final.
The 13-time French Open winner will now take to the court on Friday, his 36th birthday, to face Germany's Alexander Zverev in one semi-final after the third seed defeated Spanish teenage superstar Carlos Alcaraz.
Nadal produced a stunning performance in the early exchanges, racing out to a 6-2, 3-0 lead over Djokovic before it all changed as the world number one fought back.
More to come.
ABC/AP
