PARIS, FRANCE - JUNE 09: Rafael Nadal of Spain celebrates a point during his Mens Singles ... [+]
Diego Schwartzman gave it a gallant effort, but in the end nothing could stop the invincibility and inevitability of Rafael Nadal on the red clay.
Despite seeing his consecutive sets streak ended at 36, the 13-time French Open champion pushed through to the semifinals with a 6-3, 4-6, 6-4, 6-0 victory over the diminutive Argentine in the quarterfinals on Wednesday.
The 35-year-old Nadal is now two match wins from his 14th Roland Garros title and a record-setting 21st Grand Slam title — which would push him one past his longtime rival Roger Federer for the first time ever.
Next up for Nadal will either be world No. 1 Novak Djokovic — who has won 18 major titles but hasn’t beaten Nadal on clay in five years — or No. 9 seed Matteo Berrettini of Italy. The huge-hitting Berrettini advanced via walkover when Federer withdrew from the tournament ahead of their fourth-round match.
No. 5 Stefanos Tsitsipas will face No. 6 Sascha Zverev in the other semifinal Friday, with the winner advancing to his first French Open final.
Nadal is 26-0 in Roland Garros semifinals and finals.
Nadal improved to an absurd 105-2 at the French and has now won 35 straight matches at his favorite tournament. He is seeking his fifth straight Roland Garros title.
Nadal improved to 11-1 against Schwartzman and 6-0 in majors. The Argentine’s only win over Nadal came in the 2020 Rome quarterfinals.
Nadal got a key break for 5-4 in the third when he scrambled to make a forehand volley and Schwartzman pushed the return long. Nadal then held to close out the set for a 2-sets-to-1 lead.
Nadal then jumped out to an early break in the fourth set and Schwartman won just five points in the fourth set. Nadal won 24 of 29 points in the fourth.
Now Nadal stands one match victory from another French Open final — and two from being alone in the history books.
