PARIS // Andy Murray will attempt on Friday to become the first British man in 77 years to reach the French Open final, but world No 1 and eight-time champion Rafael Nadal is standing in his way.
Bunny Austin was the last Briton to advance to the men’s championship match, in 1937, while Fred Perry was the country’s last winner in Paris, two years earlier.
But Murray is making a habit out of shredding the history books – his Wimbledon triumph last year ended Britain’s 77-year wait for a men’s title winner.
Then again, Murray, 27, lost to Nadal at the same stage in Paris in 2011 without winning a set.
In fact, Murray, who has a 5-14 career record against Nadal on all surfaces, has lost all five of his meetings on clay with the Spanish star.
Nadal, in turn, has eight titles in Paris, has won 64 matches against just one defeat in the event and is attempting to become the first man to win five Roland Garros crowns in succession.
Despite the facts and figures stacking up against him, Murray believes he has the mental and physical weapons to shatter the Nadal legend.
Unlike his loss in 2011, Murray is now a two-time grand slam winner himself, and his confidence is buoyed by having won a set off Nadal on clay in Rome last month.
“I obviously know how to win these tournaments now – back then, I didn’t,” said Murray, who has never won a clay-court title. “I was trying extremely hard, but I had never done it.”
But he believes there are cracks, albeit small ones, in the famed Nadal armour that can be exploited, and he saw enough in Rome to justify his confidence.
“I definitely learnt some things in that match,” Murray said. “It was quite clear in my head, as well, what was working and what wasn’t.
“It was obviously different conditions here and a different court, different balls. When we played in Rome, it was extremely cold and wet. I have been told it’s meant to be 25 or 26 degrees on Friday.”
The weather could play a crucial role, with Nadal preferring warm, sunny weather that allows him to dictate the pace of the game and the ball.
Nadal has defied critics who wondered whether he would make it this far after experiencing his worst season on European clay in a decade. He already has three losses on clay in 2014 and is wary of the threat posed by Murray.
“I’m not impressed by the way he’s playing on clay,” Nadal said. “I am not answering in a bad way. I’m saying in a good way. He can play very well on all the surfaces. He’s a candidate to win Roland Garros.”
Friday's first semi-final pairs world No 2 Novak Djokovic, who needs a French Open title to become the eighth man to complete the career grand slam, against outspoken Latvian Ernests Gulbis, who will be playing in his first grand slam semi-final.
Djokovic is playing in his fourth successive French Open semi, having been runner-up to Nadal in 2012.
Gulbis, seeded 18th, has a 1-4 record against Djokovic, with whom he trained in his youth at the Niki Pilic academy in Munich.
Gulbis, 25, so long the sport’s enfant terrible, has finally matched hard work to his talent and reached the semi-finals by knocking out fourth-seeded Roger Federer and sixth-seeded Tomas Berdych.
In 2014, only Nadal has won more matches than the controversial big-hitter from Riga.
“He plays really well. He has a huge serve that, if it goes in, it can give him a lot of advantage,” Djokovic said.
“He knows how to move, how to anticipate. He’s definitely going to be aggressive and going to go for his shots against me. That’s his style.”
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