Stefanos Tsitsipas defeated Daniil Medvedev in straight sets on Court Philippe Chatrier to advance into a second consecutive semi-final at Roland Garros.
The Greek had only beaten Medvedev once in their previous seven matches but looked in control from the beginning of the match and took just two hours and 19 minutes to complete a 6-3, 7-6 (7-3), 7-5 victory.
The fifth-seed Tsitsipas was playing on his favoured surface while the world No 2 has openly admitted his dislike for the clay surface but the Greek insisted he had to remain focused to beat his rival.
Tsitsipas said: ‘I was playing against one of the best players on the tour so I had to keep up the intensity and elevate my game.
‘I felt like I was playing really well and it was one of my best performances this week. I think the difference today was my mentality and it showed when 0-40 down in the final game and then to comeback to break and win the match was excellent.
‘I’m really happy about my performance because here on clay in Paris it brings back good memories and I’m happy to return to the semi-finals and hopefully this year I can go further.’
Both players served well to begin but a singular break midway through the first set was enough for Tsitsipas to take the opener in 31 minutes.
The following two sets were more tightly contested as the Greek went a break up early in the second set before Medvedev battled to recover the deficit.
However the world No 2 spurned two set points at 4-5 which allowed Tsitsipas the opportunity to take a two-set lead via a tie-break.
It was then Medvedev’s turn to take a break-lead before the Greek recovered to level up the set. Yet unlike his opponent, Tsitsipas was then able to convert the crucial break point by batting away Medvedev’s underarm serve to win the match.
Meanwhile, Alexander Zverev set up a mouth-watering semi-final with Tsitsipas after he made lightwork of his quarter-final opponent Alejandro Davidovich Fokina defeating the Spaniard 6-4, 6-1, 6-1 in one hour and 36 minutes.
First-timers in the final four
A battle of the doubles partners saw Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova defeat Elena Rybakina to win her first Grand Slam quarter-final at the sixth attempt and reach the semi-finals of a major for the first time.
Pavluyuchenkova lost the first set via a tie-break but rallied in the second set to bring the scores level before holding her nerve deep in the decisive set to find the crucial break and win the match 6-7 (2-7), 6-2, 9-7 in two hours and 35 minutes.
The Russian’s opponent also reached her maiden semi-final via a decisive third set. The world No 85 Tamara Zidansek became the first Slovenian woman to reach the final four of a Grand Slam by defeating Paula Badosa 7-5, 4-6, 8-6 in two hours and 29 minutes.
Britain’s Joe Salisbury a step away from ending a 39-year drought
After the Britian’s singles’ hopes failed to make the second week of the tournament, Joe Salisbury has carried the weight of the nation on his back in the mixed doubles.
Salisbury and his partner Desirae Krawczyk progressed into the final without setting foot on to the court after their semi-final opponents Juan Sebastian Cabal and Giuliana Olmos withdrew from the tournament.
The pair will face the all-Russian duo of Aslan Karatsev and Elena Vesnina in the final where victory for Salisbury would bring a stop to Britain’s 39-year wait for a main draw French Open title.
