Day 12 will begin with the conclusion of the Men’s quarter-finals from Wednesday, which were carried over due to rain. Rafael Nadal trails Diego Schwartzman by a set, but is two points away from pulling even. Marin Cilic and Juan Martin Del Potro are at 5-5 in the opening set tiebreak. Both of those matches have much more story to be told.
The women’s semifinals will then commence not before 3:00pm local time. The first semifinal will see the champion from two years ago face a two-time finalist. They’ll not only battle for a return trip to the final: the winner will also be the world number one come Monday. The second semifinal will be an All-American affair, and a rematch from the 2017 US Open final. That match was a blowout in favour of Sloane Stephens, though I expect Madison Keys to put up a bit more of a fight on this day.
Simona Halep vs. Garbine Muguruza
Muguruza holds a 3-1 record against Halep, with the most recent encounter coming last summer in the Cincinnati final. On that day, Garbine demolished Simona 6-1, 6-0. We’ve seen many such losses from Halep in the past year, winning a small number of games in numerous blowout defeats. That’s not becoming of a world number one. Halep has advanced to this stage without much attention, also atypical of the top-ranked player. Simona though likely enjoys being a bit under the radar considering her history in Paris. As many in the media have already pointed out, Muguruza has the same swagger in this tournament that she’s had in other big tournament wins, such as Cincinnati and Wimbledon last year, as well as the 2016 French Open. Halep’s only victory over Muguruza came in their only match on clay, at Stuttgart in 2015. Simona’s defense will provide more resistance than Garbine’s opponents in previous rounds. Still, Muguruza has been in the zone during this fortnight. Unless she has an off day, I don’t see Halep preventing Garbine from returning to the final, as well as to the top of the rankings.
Sloane Stephens vs. Madison Keys
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In their only other previous encounter outside last year’s US Open, Stephens also prevailed in Miami in 2015. Playing on clay should work even more into Sloane’s favor. Keys came into this tournament without much form, going just 2-2 in the European clay lead-up events before withdrawing in Rome due to a rib injury. She was not on many people’s radar to reach her first French Open semifinal, but she has decisively moved through the draw without dropping a set. She’s maintained her composure and used her power to effectively take control of each match. Madison’s play this fortnight must be partially inspired by the knowledge that this will be her last tournament with Lindsay Davenport as her coach, as stated by Tracy Austin on Tennis Channel in the US. Davenport will step away to allow Keys to work with someone who is available on a full-time basis. Keys though is yet to face an opponent in Paris with the defensive skills of Stephens, which are pretty much unmatched on tour. Aside from her extremely tight third round against a red-hot Camila Giorgi, Sloane has only dropped 12 games in her other eight sets played. Stephens has really stormed through the competition on a surface that accentuates the positives in her game. While I expect Keys to keep the match close, there’s no evidence to support an outcome other than a Stephens victory.
Order of play
Court Philippe-Chatrier
Play starts at 12pm
Rafael NADAL (ESP) [1] vs Diego SCHWARTZMAN (ARG) [11] – To be completed: Schwartzman leads 6-4 3-5
Not before 3pm
Simona HALEP (ROU) [1] vs Garbiñe MUGURUZA (ESP) [3]
Madison KEYS (USA)[13] vs Sloane STEPHENS (USA)[10]
Court Suzanne-Lenglen
Play starts at 12pm
Marin CILIC (CRO) [3] contre Juan Martin DEL POTRO (ARG) [5] – To be completed: Match tied 6-6 (5-5)
Gabriela DABROWSKI (CAN) & Mate PAVIC (CRO) [1] vs Latisha CHAN (TPE) & Ivan DODIG (CRO) [2]
Nikola MEKTIC (CRO) & Alexander PEYA (AUT) [8] vs Pierre-Hugues HERBERT (FRA) & Nicolas MAHUT (FRA) [6]
