Djokovic predicts another classic

World number one Novak Djokovic is predicting another classic encounter when he takes on Roger Federer in the semi-finals of the French Open on Friday (Djokovic 1/2, Federer 13/8 with bet365).

The two players met at the same stage of the Roland Garros tournament last year with Federer eventually prevailing 7-6 6-3 3-6 7-6 in what was undoubtedly one of the matches of 2011.

The Serb went into that clash on a 43-match unbeaten streak and despite playing some of his best tennis, was powerless to stop his Swiss opponent, who eventually fell to Rafael Nadal in the final.

The two resume their rivalry on the Philippe Chatrier court on Friday with the winner setting up a final against either the aforementioned Nadal or Andy Murray’s conqueror, David Ferrer.

Djokovic (7/2 French Open outright with bet365) is expecting another tight contest and says there is no real favourite going into the match.

“Last year we were part of a great match that went the distance, and he played incredibly well,” he said. “I thought I played at a very high level. I just hope we can have another good match for us and for the crowd to be a part of.

“I will try to be out there believing I can win. Now there is no real favourite for that match. It’s the semi-finals, so everything is open,” he added.

Ferrer cautiously optimistic

David Ferrer admits he is playing well at Roland Garros but feels he will have to be right at the top of his game to beat Andy Murray in Wednesday’s quarter-final (Ferrer 8/15, Murray 6/4 Match Prices – bet365).

The 30-year-old has been one of the best players on clay in the past few years but, surprisingly, has never made it past the quarter-finals at the French Open.

He has yet to drop a set in Paris this year with comprehensive victories over Lukas Lacko, Benoit Paire, Mikhail Youzhny, and Marcel Granollers en route to a last-eight clash with the Scot (Ferrer 3-0 Set Betting 9/4 – bet365).

Conversely, the British number one has struggled physically in the French capital and almost withdrew from the tournament during his second-round clash with Finland’s Jarkko Nieminen due to a back injury.

But he battled on and overcame further problems with his body when beating Richard Gasquet last time out.

It looks set to be a classic encounter in mid-week and Ferrer appears in a confident mood ahead of his showdown with the Brit.

“I don’t know if I’m playing my best tennis, it’s difficult to say that, but of course I am in a good moment,” he said. “I am playing very good this tournament.”

The Spaniard has won all three meetings with Murray on clay, while his opponent has been dominant on the other surfaces, but the Valencia resident was quick to play down his superior head-to-head record on the red surface.

“Every match is different and I know to beat Andy I need to play my best tennis,” he added. “He is very, very good on a clay court and all surfaces.”

Nadal grounded on Paris chances

Rafael Nadal took less than two hours to demolish Juan Monaco 6-2 6-0 6-0 at the French Open – but insisted he would not be celebrating early (Nadal 4/9 – 2012 Men’s French Open outright with bet365).

The six-time Roland Garros champion will next face countryman Nicolas Almagro (28-6 record) for a place in the last four and on this form will take some stopping (Almagro 14/1 Nadal 1/33 – match prices with bet365).

The 26-year-old had conceded just 10 games to Monaco in their three other clay-court meetings and broke him eight times from 10 opportunities in a one-sided contest in the French capital.

The victory meant it is the fourth time in eight appearances at the clay-court Slam that the Spaniard has reached the quarter-finals without the loss of a set.

The world number two took Almagro apart, winning 6-1 6-1 6-1, in their 2008 clash at the same tournament and also beat him in Paris more recently in 2010.

Nadal said he was happy with his form but stressed there would be no premature celebrations.

“I feel really comfortable, really at ease,” said Nadal. “When the tournament is over, I’ll tell you if this was my best Roland Garros or not. For the time being, I’m still playing. So far, so good, but we’ll see.”

Tsonga talks up Djokovic upset

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (40/1 – French Open outright) knows he will be up against it when he takes on world number one Novak Djokovic in his French Open quarter-final but the Frenchman is approaching the clash with plenty of confidence.

Tsonga, seeded fifth, meets the Serb star next after eventually seeing off Stanislas Wawrinka in five sets in Paris 6-4 7-6 (8-6) 3-6 3-6 6-4.

Tsonga knows he will be viewed as the outsider in the last-eight clash but that means he can go into the match without too much pressure or expectation on his shoulders.

The local star (7/2 to beat Djokovic) will also have the backing of the crowd and he says he feels fit and confident as he prepares to meet Djokovic (1/5).

“Physically, I feel good – the more I play, the better I play,” he said. “For sure there is more pressure on him. For me to play on clay is never easy, I did my best results on grass or hard courts.

“Clay is difficult but I’m sure I will be able to play well, and playing in front of my crowd I have nothing to lose against the world number one.”

Federer ready for “big match”

Roger Federer insists he is looking forward to playing Belgian youngster David Goffin on Sunday as he continues his march towards the later stages of the French Open (Federer 8/1 – French Open Outright with bet365).

The Swiss ace will play the 21-year-old for a place in the quarter-finals and is a short price to come through the match in straight sets (Federer 2/11 – 3-0 Set Betting with bet365).

The 16-time Grand Slam winner was made to work hard for a four-set victory over Nicolas Mahut in the third round but should be far too good for the man who idolised the former world number one as a child.

Goffin admits that he used to have posters of Federer on his walls as he grew up in Liege and has always considered the 2009 Paris champion the perfect role model both on and off the court.

The ‘lucky loser’ has already taken some decent scalps at Roland Garros, beating Radek Stepanek, Arnaud Clement and Lukasz Kubot en route to the fourth round, but he admits things are about to get a lot tougher.

“I expect a very difficult match on Sunday,” he said. “I don’t know exactly how I should prepare for this match, but I’ll try and have fun.”

Federer was full of praise for his next opponent and admitted that it will be odd to face someone who was just a kid when he won his first Grand Slam.

“It’s strange, weird. It’s everything you can imagine,” he said. “So it’s a big match for him, and for me, too. It’s going to be an unusual match for me, knowing that now.

“I’ve seen him around, but it’s a nice game, he’s a smooth ball striker and talented, obviously.”

Murray through despite injury fright

Andy Murray (33/1 – French Open Outright with bet365) managed to book his spot in the third round of the French Open, but he had to overcome a back problem to progress.

The British number one looked uncomfortable and in pain during the first set against Jarkko Nieminen, losing the opener 1-6, as Murray looked immobile and unable to properly serve and the trainer came on court to treat him three times.

Murray did manage to climb off the canvas and fought back from 4-2 down in the second set, managing to win 11 of the next 12 games on his way to sealing a remarkable 1-6 6-4 6-1 6-2 victory over his Finnish opponent.

The Scot now has a day off to rest and recuperate before his third round clash with Colombian Santiago Giraldo, but he has been struggling with back problems since December and this latest setback will lead to questions about his condition with Wimbledon and the Olympics on the horizon.

Murray admitted his coaching team advised him to retire hurt after the first set and had even toyed with the notion of not playing at all, as the issue flared up before he took to the court.

“It was tough. I was obviously struggling at lot particularly at the beginning of the match. I don’t know how I won to be honest,” he said.

“I think my back went into spasm. It was sore this morning when I got up and practised and it was sore 20 minutes after I finished practice.

“I couldn’t put weight on my left leg. I had it in practice a couple of times. The guys were telling me to stop after the first set, we talked about it briefly before the match and I just decided to play.”

Elsewhere, defending champion Rafael Nadal (4/7 – Outright with bet365) raced to a simple 6-2 6-2 6-0 victory over Denis Istomin to secure his easy passage into the third round.

Venus out to salvage family pride

Venus Williams knows she will have to dig deep to get past Agnieszka Radwanska in Wednesday’s second round French Open clash (Radwanska 2/5, Williams 7/4 Match Prices with bet365).

Following sister Serena’s shock first-round exit to Virginie Razzano on Monday, the elder sibling has been left to fly the family flag on her least favourite surface and has it all to do to advance to the third round against the number three seed.

Williams has hinted that this could well be her final year on tour as she continues to struggle with autoimmune disease Sjogren’s Syndrome.

The Florida resident made it clear earlier this week that she would love to play in the London Olympics and that might be ‘the last time you see me.’

But she has more pressing issues on Wednesday aftrenoon with a clash against the Polish star, who has reached the fourth round at Roland Garros on three occasions.

The American holds a 5-2 winning advantage over Radwanska but was no match for the Krakow resident when they met in the quarter-finals of the Sony Ericsson Open back in March, with the European ace winning 6-4 6-1 (Radwanska 2-0 Set Betting 11/10 with bet365).

It is clear that Williams is not the player she was due to her illness but she will battle for every point in Paris and, although it seems highly unlikely that she will ever add to her seven Grand Slam singles titles, she is a proud woman and will want to put on a decent display.

The five-time Wimbledon champion has come to terms with her problem and admits that the future is a little unsure, saying: “It is definitely an adventure and a journey, and it is just life happening.”

Murray ready to master clay

Andy Murray insists he now feels at home on the Roland Garros clay courts as he begins his assault on the title against Japan’s Tatsuma Ito on Tuesday (Murray 3-2 Winner Set Betting 14/1 with bet365).

The British number one reached his first semi-final at the French Open 12 months ago before losing to eventual winner and clay-court legend Rafael Nadal.

The Scot has made no secret of the fact that clay is his least favourite surface and many pundits believe his best chance of winning a Grand Slam will be at Wimbledon or the US Open (Murray 11/2 Wimbledon Outright with bet365).

The 25-year-old upped his level on clay last season, though, and reached the semi-finals in two tournaments leading up to the Paris showpiece, but he has been unable to replicate that form this season and has yet to reach the quarter-finals on the slowest surface.

The world number four admits that it has taken him a while to come to terms with conditions in Paris but he is now happy with the way his game feels on the red surface.

“The movement is the thing that always takes me a while to get used to, but normally after a few weeks that’s okay,” he said. “It’s something I always try to work on a little bit when I’m training.

“Each year I have enjoyed it more and more. I guess as I have got older I’ve learned to appreciate it more.”

Murray confessed that he has only seen brief glimpses of Ito play, but made it clear that he does not have a vast amount of knowledge of the Far East star.

“I have seen his game before and hit balls against him,” he added. “He’s quite a flat hitter of the ball, a pretty good ball striker. But I haven’t seen him play loads.”

Nadal expecting tough tournament

Rafael Nadal (1/5 to reach the French Open final with bet365) says he cannot afford to be complacent at the French Open and that his recent fine form will count for nothing at Roland Garros.

The Spaniard has won six of the last seven French Opens, with his only loss in that time coming against Swede Robin Soderling in 2009.

The 25-year-old is currently in fine form having won three of his last four tournaments – in Monte Carlo, Barcelona and Rome – and is once again seen as the favourite going into the second Grand Slam of the year.

Nadal is currently level with Bjorn Borg on six French Open victories and another will see him become the most successful player in the open era in Paris, with seven titles to his name.

The world number two faces Italy’s Simone Bolelli in the first round on Monday and will be confident of getting his campaign off to the perfect start (Bolelli 33/1, Nadal 1/200 – Match Outright with bet365).

However, the ‘King of Clay’ is taking nothing for granted and is expecting yet another tough year at Roland Garros.

“Because I played very well at the three clay-court tournaments, that doesn’t mean that I’m going to have success here,” he said. “The only thing that means is I have three more titles in my bedroom that are very important for me.

“I arrive here with positive feelings, and I will try my best to be very competitive and to be at the right level to have my chances.”

Brits handed tough French Open draws

Andy Murray could face Rafael Nadal in the semi-finals of the French Open after being placed in a tricky part of the draw, while the British women didn’t fare much better (Murray 22/1 French Open outright with bet365).

The British number one, who has had a disappointing clay-court season up until now, while face world number 69 Tatsuma Ito in the first round but then has potentially tricky matches against Bernard Tomic, Richard Gasquet and David Ferrer in the latter stages.

Should Murray make it through to the last four then old adversary Nadal could be standing in his way, much like he was 12 months ago as the Spaniard went on to win a sixth title at Roland Garros.

In the other half of the draw Roger Federer and world number one Novak Djokovic could clash in the semi-finals of the French Open.

Djokovic, who is seeking to become the first man since Rod Laver in 1969 to hold all four Grand Slam titles simultaneously, while face Potito Starace in round one, while Federer takes on Tobias Kamke.

In the women’s side draw British hopeful Elen Baltacha has been paired with reiging US Open champion and 12/1 outright hopeful Samantha Stosur.

Meanwhile, Anne Keothavong will play Melinda Czink, while Heather Watson will face a qualifier, potentially Laura Robson who still has to beat Karolina Pliskova to reach the main draw.

5/2 outright favourite Serena Williams has been placed in the same quarter of the draw as Caroline Wozniacki and second seed Maria Sharapova.