French Open Tennis Semi-Finals

Preview -

Nadal, Federer, Djokovic or

Monfils?

 

June 05, 2008

We're down to the final four at Roland Garros. Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic have all made it through as predicted. But unexpectedly, so has 21 year Gael Monfils of France. With each player competing for so much more than the Grand Slam title itself, who will triumph in the upcoming encounters and claim victory?

Semi Final 1

Roger Federer (1) vs Gael Monfils

 

 

Roger Federer – Chasing Dreams

For a tennis champion who seems to have it all, Federer is chasing something that has eluded him thus far – a French Open title. With twelve grand slam titles to his name, not one of those wins has been achieved at Roland Garros.

However, this year more than ever before, Federer looks like he has what it takes to become the champion in Paris. After suffering what can only be called terrible form for the World Number 1 at the start of 2008 (not claiming a single hard court title win), Federer seems to have turned his fortunes around on clay and is currently performing in supreme fashion. He is holding a 20-3 record on the red surface this year, and despite losing in two ATP Finals to Rafael Nadal, his performance against the Spaniard is clearly improving; the first loss at Monte Carlo was 7-5, 7-5 whilst at Hamburg he managed to take a set and was defeated 7-5 6-7(3) 6-3. For someone who is constantly improving the quality of their game, this shows promising potential.

Federer has only dropped two sets on his way to the semi-finals. If he continues to play as he has done, he should surely make the final and have one of his closest encounters with Rafael Nadal to date. But if he is indeed to make the final, and creep that much closer to Sampras's 14 Grand Slam Title record, Federer will first have to overcome the in-form crowd favourite, Gael Monfils.

Gael Monfils – Up and Coming Tennis Star?

Before today, nobody would have expected Gael Monfils to come this far at Roland Garros. With only 1 title under his belt so far (the 2008 Challenger Marrakech) Monfils' previous best performances at a Grand Slam was to make the fourth round, which he did at the French Open in 2006. But all of that means nothing now to the former Junior World Number 1 if he continues playing the way he has done in the past week.

Monfils' form can best be described as sporadic and inconsistent. With an all-time high ranking of 23rd in the world (achieved in June 2006), Monfils now currently stands at 59th in the world. He has beaten top players such as Andy Roddick, Lleyton Hewitt and James Blake in the past, however such form has not been seen since mid-2007. But when he does play at his best Monfils has shown that he is a force to reckoned with, as this week's results have no doubt proven. His wins over David Ferrer and Ivan Ljubicic display that he has the potential to be a top 10 player, but if Monfils is to achieve lasting success, he must maintain such form on a more permanent basis.

Federer holds a 3-0 record over Monfils, two victories of which have been achieved this year. But one thing is for sure: If Monfils continues to play as he has done recently, then we are bound to witness a marathon of a match between him and Federer. France will be dreaming with Monfils over the next few days.

Prediction: Federer should win, but don't be surprised if it manages to go to at least 4 sets.

Semi Final 2

Rafael Nadal (2) vs Novak Djokovic (3)

 

Rafael Nadal – King of Clay 

 

Rafael Nadal is looking to win his fourth straight French Open title, a feat which has only been achieved in the past by the great Björn Borg. Some recent injury fears aside, Nadal's form has been absolutely stellar on clay; of his last 115 clay matches, Nadal has won 113 and lost only 2. These results absolutely speak for themselves.

Nadal has yet to drop a set at this year's French Open and he made extremely light work in recent rounds of both Nicholas Almagro and Fernando Verdasco, some of the best players in the world. Furthermore, Nadal has lost just 25 games in five rounds, the lowest in any Grand Slam event in the Open era. With everything going his way, Nadal looks unstoppable right now. But there is more than just a final berth to play for – the World Number 2 spot is up for grabs as well.

 

Novak Djovokic – World Number 1 in the Making?

If Novak Djokovic defeats Rafael Nadal in the semi final, he will become the new tennis World Number 2. He is already the current ATP points leader for 2008 after winning the Australian Open and three other titles, and many see him becoming the World Number One in the very near future. But if he wishes to become the World Number Two first, Djokovic will have to beat Rafael Nadal in Friday's match.

After a shaky start to his French Open campaign, Djokovic's form has been thoroughly impressive, not dropping a single set since the first round. His performance on clay this year has also been superb, losing only two matches out of eighteen. Unfortunately, both of those losses came at the hands of Nadal. Still, Djokovic did manage to win the second set against Nadal at Hamburg before being beaten in a three hour marathon, so there is definitely hope for him. If he truly wants leap forward in his quest to become the best in the world, Djokovic will have to overcome the best clay player in the world at Roland Garros.

Prediction: Nadal will probably be too good for Djokovic, but he may drop his first set of the tournament if Djokovic plays a strong match.

Join us in the coming days for a preview of the Grand Slam Final. Until then, enjoy the tennis!