Spectators have been thin on the ground this week at a cold and damp Roland Garros but sporting and showbiz royalty in the shape of Eric Cantona and Leonardo Di Caprio witnessed Murray’s hugely impressive 6-4 6-2 4-6 6-2 semi-final victory over Stan Wawrinka.
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Djokovic, who will be playing his fourth Roland Garros final, wasted no time in the first two sets, proving too consistent for the erratic 13th seed.
“I am extremely proud”. Murray’s grand slam breakthrough would follow four years later when he beat Djokovic at the 2012 U.S. Open to end a 76-year major singles title drought for British men.
On the men’s side, No. 1 seed Novak Djokovic will face second-seeded Andy Murray, while top seed Serena Williams will battle Garbine Muguruza, the tournament’s No. 4 seed.
Crucially, it will be another chance for Djokovic to claim his career Grand Slam, having never won the French Open and losing to Wawrinka in last year’s final. Murray, also 29, can become the first British victor of the men’s title since Fred Perry in 1935.
Despite trailing 23-10 in career meetings with Djokovic, the Scot enjoyed a morale-boosting win on clay in the Rome final last month.
The Serbian world No. 1 comfortably contained the 22-year-old Thiem to set up a heavyweight final against second seed Andy Murray.
In addition to trying to complete a career Grand Slam, Djokovic will be hoping to accomplish something even more rare – winning a fourth consecutive major title, something that hasn’t been done by a man in almost a half-century. “He didn’t give me free points except for the first serve game when I had a break point and maybe he made one or two mistakes”.
Murray finally stumbled at 4-5 down with a couple of unforced errors that allowed Wawrinka to get the break he needed.
Djokovic had faced cancellations and delays during the second week of the tournament, playing back-to-back days after a washed out Monday and repeated showers; Murray suffered the same problems in the first week.
Asked who he was backing to take his title, Wawrinka said: “I think Novak, as always, even though his recent matches he’s played were very tight”. The two-time quarterfinalist at Roland Garros has barely put a foot wrong on way to her first French Open final, dropping just one set – in the first round. I think he will win the match. Or will Djokovic have enough energy left in the tank after playing four days in succession at the rain-ravaged claycourt Grand Slam to become the first man in nearly 50 years to hold all four majors at once? I’m looking forward to the final.
It was clear how good he considered his chances to be here after beating Djokovic in the final of the Rome Masters a week before the tournament when he said of the Stepanek victory: “It could turn out to be one of the biggest wins of my career”. His shocking loss in last year’s final to surprise champion Stan Wawrinka must have stung deeply after he had dispatched his clay nemesis Nadal easily in the quarterfinals – surely, he thought, the title would be his.
He took the second set convincingly before Wawrinka pulled one back in the third.
Djokovic was runner-up to nine-time victor Rafael Nadal in 2012 and 2014 and was stunned by big-hitting Wawrinka 12 months ago.
“It’s obviously a very big match for both of us”, said Murray.
Williams’ effort against Bertens was patchy at best with the victor committing more than 30 unforced errors and taking four match points to advance in just under one-and-three-quarter hours. “He knew what to do against me”.
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Djokovic went on to defeat Rafael Nadal in a five-set final which was the longest in Grand Slam history at five hours and 53 minutes. He’s lost three Roland Garros finals, including two to nine-time victor Nadal and one to Switzerland’s Wawrinka previous year.
