The Scot took advantage of the flat atmosphere as he broke Gasquet’s first service game to lead 3-0 and then 5-2. He is defending champion. “He plays well on that court, so I’ll have to play great tennis to beat him”. “It was very, very important to win the second set because it was a very physical match up to that point”, he said courtside.
Advertisement
Wawrinka is the oldest semifinalist in Paris since 32-year-old Jimmy Connors in 1985.
Murray was due to play Richard Gasquet in the quarter-finals on Tuesday but his only venture onto Court Philippe Chatrier was to assess the miserable conditions.
“I don’t know if he’s going to be able to keep this up, so to me he has got his best shot ever”. Indeed Murray had beaten the Frenchman in all four Grand Slam meetings, most famously coming back from the brink at Wimbledon in 2008 in a five-set marathon. World number one Novak Djokovic has never triumphed in Paris. It’s a grand slam.
Djokovic also crossed the $100 million prize money barrier on Wednesday.
Djokovic wasted no time taking the third set, winning the opening two games, but he has not found his best form yet this tournament and the fourth was a struggle.
The second set moved to a tiebreak with Murray desperately searching for answers, and he bounced back from a double-fault and closed things out with authority to level the match at a set apiece.
Third seed Wawrinka beat Spain’s Albert Ramos-Vinolas 6-2 6-1 7-6 (9-7).
Granollers had made the last 16 without hitting a ball when nine-time champion Rafael Nadal withdrew with a wrist injury last week.
Bertens eliminated a seeded player for the third time in the tournament, after upsetting No. 3 Angelique Kerber, the Australian Open champion, in the first round, then No. 29 Daria Kasatkina in the third round.
Goffin is only the second Belgian man to reach the last eight in Paris.
WOMEN’S QUARTERFINALS: American Shelby Rogers could reach the semifinals before Serena and her older sister Venus Williams – who is also playing in the fourth round. He led 5-2 in each of the first two sets before letting those leads slip away, getting broken while serving for both at 5-3. I respect them. I’m not frightened. Thiem, 22, has yet to make the breakthrough to a final at the Slams. “Why not?” said Muguruza, who lost to Stosur in three sets in Madrid in their only previous meeting two years ago. Murray continued to fight, earning several break back points, but a lame backhand into the net eventually gifted the set to Gasquet.
“Four in a row?” I don’t think they really care what we think.
“In Rome I played four in a row?” “You can just push it a little bit”.
Venus Williams failed in her bid to reach the French Open quarterfinals for the first time in a decade, losing to eighth-seeded Timea Bacsinszky of Switzerland 6-2, 6-4 in the fourth round Wednesday.
Today Andy Murray will face Richard Gasquet in the quarter final match.
The match originally was supposed to be played Monday, but was postponed twice because of rain.
The French crowd has seen this movie many times before. I played two guys where you get zero rhythm, against (Ivo) Karlovic and (John) Isner.
Djokovic had looked far from happy during the first set but, after another lengthy rain delay, dug in and will hope to finish off his Spanish opponent without too much trouble on Wednesday.
Advertisement
“I don’t think the players should walk on court while it’s raining”, said Gulbis, a semifinalist in Paris in 2014. “That’s my goal for the next few days”.
