tennis

French Open glance: Federer, Nadal meet again in Paris

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 11:53 p.m. ET

PARIS (AP) — A quick look at the French Open:

LOOKAHEAD TO FRIDAY

For the first time in eight years, the four men seeded 1-4 all reached the semifinals at Roland Garros. The matchups are No. 2 Rafael Nadal vs. No. 3 Roger Federer, followed by No. 1 Novak Djokovic vs. No. 4 Dominic Thiem. Federer vs. Nadal is one of the great rivalries in sports. This will be their 39th meeting (Nadal leads 23-15), and sixth at the French Open (Nadal leads 5-0); Federer has won the past five showdowns, all on hard courts. Their standing in tennis history is undeniable: Federer holds the men's record with 20 Grand Slam singles titles, while Nadal ranks second with 17, including 11 in Paris. Guess who's third on the men's major list? Djokovic, of course, with 15. Thiem, meanwhile, is eyeing his first major trophy. He is in his fourth consecutive French Open semifinal and seeks his second final, after losing at that stage to Nadal in 2018. In the women's semifinals, 17-year-old American Amanda Anisimova — who eliminated defending champion Simona Halep — takes on No. 8 seed Ash Barty of Australia. Both are among the final four at a major for the first time. No. 26 seed Johanna Konta of Britain is appearing in her first semifinal at Roland Garros but her third overall at a major, going against 19-year-old Marketa Vondrousova of the Czech Republic. This is Vondrousova's first Slam semi.

FIRDAY'S FORECAST

Chance of rain. High of 66 degrees (19 Celsius).

THURSDAY'S WEATHER

Partly cloudy. High of 68 (20 Celsius).

THURSDAY'S QUARTERFINAL RESULTS

Women: Amanda Anisimova beat No. 3 Simona Halep 6-2, 6-4; No. 8 Ash Barty beat No. 14 Madison Keys 6-3, 7-5.

Men: No. 1 Novak Djokovic beat No. 5 Alexander Zverev 7-5, 6-2, 6-2; No. 4 Dominic Thiem beat No. 10 Karen Khachanov 6-2, 6-4, 6-2.

STAT OF THE DAY

1978 — The last time none of the four women's semifinalists at a Grand Slam tournament had ever reached a major final — at the Australian Open 41 years ago.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

"I mean, it's crazy. I really can't believe the result today." — Anisimova.

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