Rafael Nadal
Nadal and Thiem have already faced each other three times this season - two finals in Madrid and Barcelona and quarter-finals in Rome Getty

Rafael Nadal takes on Dominic Thiem in the men's singles semi-final at the French Open on Friday (9 June).

Where to watch live

The match starts at 2.30pm BST. Live coverage in the UK is on ITV 4. Live scores and radio commentary will be available on the official Roland Garros site.

Overview

Anyone who thinks Nadal got the favourable draw when Thiem beat Novak Djokovic in the quarter-finals must look at the stats leading up to the tournament. The latter is the second best player behind Nadal on clay this season.

Thiem made the finals in Barcelona and Madrid, both of which he lost to Nadal and made the semi-finals in Rome after beating his Roland Garros semi-final opponent in the quarter-finals. The Austrian is the only player to have beaten the king of clay on his favourite surface this season, and goes into the match with a fighting chance of causing an upset.

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A Nadal-Thiem final would have been the perfect culmination to the clay court season, but it is not to be with the winners facing a showdown for the title against one of Andy Murray or Stan Wawrinka, who play the first semi-final of the day.

The 14-time men's singles Grand Slam champion is the pre-tournament favourite to lift his 10<sup>th Roland Garros crown and has been in imperious form since the start of the event. Nadal has lost just 22 games in his five matches thus far and will be favourite going into the game against the Austrian.

Similarly, Thiem, who is playing his second successive semi-final at Roland Garros, has also been in top form as he is among only three players in the tournament apart from Nadal and Wawrinka not to have dropped a set thus far. He will come into the match in a buoyant mood having demolished Djokovic in the previous round, and has indicated that his strategy against Nadal will be to avoid giving the Spaniard chances on his forehand.

Betting odds (Betfair)

  • Rafael Nadal to win: 2/9
  • Dominic Thiem to win: 10/3

Head-To-Head

The duo have faced each other on six occasions with Nadal holding 4-2 advantage over Thiem. Their most recent meeting was at the Rome Masters when the latter beat the Spaniard in the quarter-finals. This is their second meeting at Roland Garros, their first coming in 2014 when Nadal won in straight sets.