Nadal tops Djokovic in quarter-final thriller
Paris: Rafael Nadal insists he can't know for sure whether any match at Roland Garros might be his very last at a place he loves, a place he is loved.
For now, if he keeps winning and keeps performing the way he did during his monumental quarterfinal victory over longtime rival Novak Djokovic that began in May and ended in June, Nadal will have more chances to play.
With a mix of brilliant shot-making and his trademark resilience, Nadal got past the top-seeded defending French Open champion Djokovic 6-2, 4-6, 6-2, 7-6 (4) to move a step closer to his 14th championship at the clay-court Grand Slam tournament and what would be a 22nd major trophy overall, adding to records that he already owns.
Nadal turns 36 on Friday, when he will face third-seeded Alexander Zverev in the semifinals. When the subject of Nadal's future was brought up during his on-court interview, he smiled.
Meanwhile, top-ranked Iga Swiatek won her 33rd match in a row with a 6-3 6-2 victory over 11th-seeded Jessica Pegula to advance to the semifinals of the French Open.
The 21-year-old Swiatek will next face Daria Kasatkina of Russia for a spot in the final.
Swiatek gained from what appeared to be a missed call in the seventh game of the first set. She chased down Pegula's drop shot but it appeared to have bounced twice before she hit her winner to break and take a 4-3 lead. At one point, Pegula complained to the chair umpire about Swiatek's alleged delaying tactics between serves.
Daria Kasatkina also advanced to her first Grand Slam semifinal with a 6-4 7-6 (5) win over Veronika Kudermetova at Roland Garros.
The 20th-seeded Kasatkina will next face either top-ranked Iga Swiatek or 11th-seeded Jessica Pegula.
In a quarterfinal matchup of 25-year-old Russians, Kasatkina built a 6-1 lead in the tiebreaker and finally clinched it on her fifth match point, beating
Kudermetova with a backhand drop shot. The 29th-seeded Kudermetova took a medical timeout to have her left
foot taped after she held for a 6-5 lead in the second set. But she then lost nine of the next 10 points before her brief comeback in the
tiebreaker.
