For Rafael Nadal.
The Spaniard emerged victorious from an intense showdown with Novak Djokovic in the quarter-finals (in 4:12).
Rafael Nadal now leads 8 wins to 2 in face-to-face with the Serb at Roland-Garros.
He is only 30-29 behind in duels on all surfaces.
Nadal has been true to his legend.
He took the initiative, fought with a determination and an intensity that never wavered.
The man of all records at Roland-Garros (110 wins-3 losses) hinted that he could, at 35, play his last match in Paris.
The crowd wears it and the threat of the expiry only amplifies the support available to the one who collects 13 Porte d'Auteuil titles.
To discover
Roland Garros men's singles
Roland Garros single ladies
For Alexander Zverev.
As in 2021 (stopped by Stefanos Tsitsipas in 5 sets), the German (seeded n°3) is in the semi-finals.
The German has, with authority, closed the door of the last four to the phenomenon Carlos Alcaraz.
He has an appointment with Rafael Nadal for a place in the final.
Finalist of the US Open 2020, he is still waiting for a first major title.
The Spaniard leads 6 wins to 3 in their face-to-face (including 4 wins to 1 on clay).
They have never met at Roland-Garros.
It will be a great first.
For Casper Ruud.
The Norwegian (seeded n°8) is a fan of clay (player having won the most matches on the surface since 2020).
To experience his first Grand Slam semi-final, he dismissed the Dane Holger Rune (19 years old; 40th in the world) in 4 sets.
Ruud (23) leads 2 wins to 0 against Marin Cilic.
For Marin Cilic.
The Croatian (33 years old; n°20) will experience his first semi-final at Roland-Garros.
After having notably accompanied Gilles Simon (one of his pet peeves) with firmness, he eliminated Daniil Medvedev without giving him the slightest chance, then got the better of Andrey Rublev in the quarter-finals by dominating the key moments, in particular the decisive game of the 5th set perfectly mastered.
Marin Cilic, who had not attended the last four in the Grand Slam since 2018 (Australian Open finalist), very fit, seems to have found a second youth.
His serve and his forehand will be his assets.
For the French Garcia-Mladenovic and Debru.
Crowned in doubles in 2016 at Roland-Garros, Caroline Gracia and Kristina Mladenovic (quickly eliminated in singles) console themselves in tandem.
For a place in the final, the French will meet the pair made up of the Ukrainian Lyudmyla Kichenko and the Latvian Jelena Ostapenko (seeded n°14).
Last year, the French had occupied the entire last four (final victory for Luca Van Assche) among the juniors.
This year, Gabriel Debru shines.
Seeded n°14, he will be opposed to Slovak Peter Benjamin Privara for a place in the final.
The program, this Friday.
Court Philippe Chatrier (from 3 p.m.): Nadal (ESP, 5)-Zverev (GER, 3).
Not before 5:30 p.m.: Ruud (NOR, 8)-Cilic (CRO, 20).
The biggest surprises in the history of Roland-Garros
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