The Latest: Djokovic downs Nadal to reach French Open final

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This article was published 11/06/2021 (1935 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

PARIS (AP) — The Latest on the French Open (all times local):

11:25 p.m.

Thirteen-time champion Rafael Nadal has lost to Novak Djokovic in the French Open semifinals.

Nadal lost their 58th showdown 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (4), 6-2.

It’s only the third time Nadal has lost at his favorite tournament. Djokovic is responsible for two of those defeats.

Djokovic won the French Open in 2016 and could join Rod Laver and Roy Emerson as the only men to win each of the four Grand Slam tournaments twice. He will face Stefanos Tsitsipas in Sunday’s final.

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10:55 p.m.

The 5,000 fans attending the French Open semifinal between Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal have been allowed to stay in the stadium in spite of the nationwide coronavirus curfew starting at 11 p.m.

After Djokovic moved ahead 2-1 on sets, a stadium announcement said that following talks with French authorities the fans would be allowed to stay until the end of the match.

Large swathes of fans previously warned with loud chants of “We won’t leave!” to show they did not intend to leave the premises.

Shouts of “Step down, Forget!” referring to tournament director Guy Forget, could also be heard before the announcement.

Once the fans understood they would be allowed to stay, the atmosphere radically changed. They rendered an enthusiastic version of France’s national anthem, “La Marseillaise,” while some in the stadium thanked French president Emmanuel Macron for the move.

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10:40 p.m.

Novak Djokovic is just one set away from the French Open final.

Facing 13-time champion Rafael Nadal on Court Philippe Chatrier, Djokovic’s tactics of targeting Nadal’s backhand are working well. After losing the opening set, Djokovic has moved up 2-1.

He leads 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (4).

A turning point in the tiebreaker came when Nadal sent an easy forehand out of bounds, going down 5-3 after a superb rally during which they both hit drop shots. Djokovic then went up 6-4 with an ace and pushed Nadal to an error to seal the set.

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9 p.m.

Top-ranked Novak Djokovic has leveled at one set apiece against 13-time champion Rafael Nadal in their French Open semifinal.

Djokovic lost the opening set 6-3 and sealed the second 6-3 after saving two break points in the final game.

The rivalry between Djokovic and Nadal is one of the greatest in men’s tennis. They are facing off for the 17th time at a major and the 58th time overall. Djokovic leads their record 29-28, but Nadal has the edge at Roland Garros, at 7-1.

Nadal is two wins away from his 21st Grand Slam title, which would break the men’s mark he shares with Roger Federer.

Djokovic is trying to get to No. 19, which would leave him just one behind his rivals.

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6:40 p.m.

Stefanos Tstispas will play his first Grand Slam final at Roland Garros.

The fifth-seeded Greek player defeated sixth-seeded Alexander Zverev 6-3, 6-3, 4-6, 4-6, 6-3, ending a three-match losing streak in Grand Slam semifinals.

Tsitsipas sealed the win with an ace on his fifth match point.

Tsitsipas will be up against 13-time champion Rafael Nadal or top-ranked Novak Djokovic in Sunday’s final.

Tsitsipas, who is 22, became the youngest man to reach a Grand Slam final since Andy Murray at the 2010 Australian Open. He is also the youngest man to reach the final at Roland Garros since Nadal won the 2008 title.

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5:55 p.m.

The first men’s semifinal between Stefanos Tsitsipas and Alexander Zverev is going the distance at the French Open.

After losing the opening two sets, Zverev came back to even it up at 3-6, 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 on Court Philippe Chatrier.

Tsitsipas played extremely well in the first two sets with superb defending and stinging counterattacks.

Zverev served better as the match progressed but he struggled to return and was kept well behind the baseline in rallies as Tsitsipas moved him around the court and found angles.

Tsitsipas’ level dropped a bit at the start of the third set and Zverev made the most of his mistakes to rally. Tsitsipas then opened the fourth set with a double fault and dropped his serve immediately.

Tsitsipas, from Greece, is bidding to reach his first Grand Slam final. It’s his third major semifinal in a row and fourth overall. Tsitsipas is 0-3 so far.

Zverev has reached one major final at the U.S. Open last year.

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5:10 p.m.

Bethanie Mattek-Sands of the United States and Iga Swiatek of Poland are into the doubles final at Roland Garros.

They defeated Irina-Camelia Begu of Romania and Nadia Podoroska of Argentina 6-3, 6-4 in the semifinals.

They will face Czech pair Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova in the final.

Swiatek was the defending singles champion in Paris but lost in the quarterfinals.

Krejcikova will try this weekend to become the first woman to sweep the Roland Garros titles since Mary Pierce in 2000. Krejcikova also made it to the singles final on Thursday by beating Maria Sakkari 7-5, 4-6, 9-7 after saving a match point.

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2:40 p.m.

Barbora Krejcikova will try this weekend to become the first woman to sweep Roland Garros titles since Mary Pierce in 2000.

Krejcikova and fellow Czech Katerina Siniakova advanced to the doubles final with a 6-1, 6-2 win over Magda Linette of Poland and Bernarda Pera of the United States.

Krejcikova also made it to the singles final by beating Maria Sakkari 7-5, 4-6, 9-7 after saving a match point on Thursday. She will be up against Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia in Saturday’s title match.

The second doubles semifinal is pitting Bethanie Mattek-Sands of the United States and Iga Swiatek of Poland against Romanian Irina-Camelia Begu and Nadia Podoroska of Argentina.

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2:25 p.m.

The first men’s semifinal at Roland Garros pits fifth-seeded Stefanos Tsitsipas against No. 6 Alexander Zverev.

Tsitsipas, a 22-year-old from Greece, is bidding to reach his first Grand Slam final. It’s his third major semifinal in a row and fourth overall. Tsitsipas is 0-3 so far.

The 24-year-old Zverev has won one of the two major semifinals he has played, making it to the US Open final last year. The German is looking to produce a first victory against a Top 10 rival at a Grand Slam.

Tsitsipas leads Zverev 5-2.

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1:30 p.m.

A day after the marathon win that booked her a spot in the French Open final, Barbora Krejcikova is back on court at Roland Garros — in doubles this time.

Krejcikova and her fellow Czech teammate Katerina Siniakova are up against Magda Linette of Poland and Bernarda Pera of the United States in the doubles semifinals.

Krejcikova is bidding to become the first woman to sweep Roland Garros titles since Mary Pierce in 2000. The last woman to make the final of both events in Paris was another Czech, Lucie Safarova. She did it in 2015 and won the doubles title.

In just her fifth appearance in a Grand Slam singles main draw, Krejcikova made it to the final by beating Maria Sakkari 7-5, 4-6, 9-7 after saving a match point.

She’s been ranked No. 1 and won a pair of major championships in doubles.

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