There was very little tennis played in Paris yesterday as long rain delays meant that the first two men's quarterfinals were unable to get underway.
This means that all four games in the men's draw will be played today. Novak Djokovic will face the inform Dominic Thiem in a match that has all the ingredients to go the distance. Both men have incredible fire power from the baseline and their movement all around the court is also something to admire.
Djokovic who is the defending champion, has struggled to really find form over the last number of months. Recently he departed ways with his team and joined forces with tennis legend Andre Agassi. The Serb will be looking for some new ideas and strategies from Agassi - who has won multiple Grand Slams himself.
Clocking in early. â°@DjokerNole squeezes in a last practice before the big quarterfinal match. #RG17 pic.twitter.com/AYHcFop9hw
— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 7, 2017
Thiem is currently thriving on court. He has breezed through the first four rounds at Roland Garros without dropping a set. He made back-to-back finals in Barcelona and Madrid, losing to Rafa Nadal in both. However, he is also the only player that has beaten the Spaniard on clay this season. At just 23 years of age he is an extremely bright prospect for the future.
The other quarter-final that should have taken place yesterday was the all Spanish class between Pablo Carreno-Busta and nine-time former champion Rafael Nadal. The pair were only out on court for 52 minutes this morning after Carreno-Busta was forced to retire at the start of the second set. The cause of retirement looked like an abdominal pain which he was treated for at the end of the first set.
Nadal has won 80 games in this year's French Open and has only lost an astonishing 22 to this point. He will face Djokovic or Thiem in Friday's Semi-Final.
.@RafaelNadal advances to his 25th Major semifinal, 10th at #RolandGarros.
He awaits the winner of Djokovic-Thiem. #RG17 pic.twitter.com/ZsJbJwqPpB
— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 7, 2017
The other two men's semifinals that are scheduled to take place this afternoon are Stan Wawrinka and Marin Cilic, followed by Andy Murray versus Kei Nishikori. Wawrinka is a three-time Grand Slam champion and is also the Swiss number one, ahead of Roger Federer. Cilic is also a Grand Slam champion after he won the the US Open back in 2014, beating Nishikori in the final. Both matches should be very exciting for the spectators.
Murray will be looking to get the win against Kei Nishikori who seems to be struggling with a back injury. The Japanese player has been having some difficulty during his matches and with the style that Murray plays, shuffling his opponents around the court, it could be a very long afternoon for Kei, if he is not fully fit.
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