Semi-finals of the French Open 2022: Rafael Nadal against Alexander Zverev – live! | French Open 2022

First movement: Nadal* 3-4 Zverev (* denotes server). Huge cheers greet each Nadal point and they go a notch after Zverev chattered nets after a long forehand from the Spaniard. A nice precise forehand past the advancing Zverev takes him 30-0, followed by a clever volley at the net. Zverev then tries another winner down the line, but this one is straight out. It’s more like Nadal – at least in his service games. However, he hasn’t threatened Zverev on his serve yet

First movement: Nadal 2-4 Zverev* (* denotes server). A simple stop. Zverev larrupts a serve down the middle for his second ace, and a brilliant two-handed backhand down the line takes him 30-0. He repeats the trick with an even better next point before sealing the love handle with an unanswerable forehand . Nadal offered not a hint.

First movement: Nadal* 2-3 Zverev (* denotes server). Nadal’s strongest game so far. His first drop shot of the match earns a point, followed by an ace – beauty and brutality. But Zverev has the upper hand at the next rally, and Nadal slips into the net with a forehand. Another powerful serve gives Nadal a cushion, and he secures a comfortable hold when Zverev is forced to hit long.

Updated at 2:35pm BST

First set: Nadal 1-3 Zverev* (* denotes server). Zverev comes to the net and dominates a rally, which he completes with a crushing backhand volley. He quickly moves to 40-0 as Nadal fails to find the climb in another long rally. A rare underhit shot is followed by a failed forehand, but Zverev seals his service game with a strong serve.

First set: Nadal* 1-2 Zverev (* denotes server). There’s no doubt that Zverev seems to be the stronger and more potent player so far, as evidenced by a finely angled forehand winner from the back of the court. Nadal responds with a fierce serve that Zverev netts but he gets pushed around again on his serve and Zverev goes past him 15-30. Nadal then finally gets some dominance in a rally to force Zverev to hit long and follows him up with a few more excellent first serves to get himself going.

Updated at 2:21pm BST

First set: Nadal 0-2 Zverev* (* denotes server). A fierce first serve earns Zverev his first serve point, which he follows up with a stunning forehand winner down the line and an unstoppable ace. He’s denied an eighth straight point with an overlong forehand, a mistake he repeats to put Nadal back up to 40-30. But Zverev’s pace and power are too much for Nadal in the next rally and the German wraps up the hold.

Updated at 2:25pm BST

First set: Nadal* 0-1 Zverev (* denotes server). Zverev breaks immediately. Nadal wins the first point after Zverev’s loopbacks went off the net and past the baseline, and the second with a raking crosscourt forehand. Zverev responds with a fierce forehand winner after a long rally and surpasses it again in the next to take it to 30. He earns a break point after Nadal makes a net and he converts it when Nadal hits long. Zverev’s size and strength are paramount there, with Rafa going against it early on.

Nadal has a 6-3 Winning record against Zverev but the German has won three of his four most recent meetings including one on clay in Madrid last year.

The players come out. Huge cheers for Nadal, who is the first to appear, and a rather reserved one for Zverev, but no boos. Things really get going in Paris, and a small crowd of spectators brave the action in ponchos on sun loungers at Roland Garros’s Henman Hill counterpart.

British interest in the wheelchair doubles final:

Updated at 1:43pm BST

Speaking of Coco Gauff, she just walked out and also reached the women’s doubles final, she and Jessica Pegula beat Marion Keyes and Taylor Townsend 6-4, 7-6. The eighth-seeded American pair will face either Lyudmyla Kichenok and Jelena Ostapenko or Caroline Garcia and Kristina Mladenovic, who are currently in a deciding set, in the final.

In the weather news it’s raining in Paris. So Nadal and Zverev will compete under the umbrella of Philippe Chatrier.

And Argentina’s Gustavo Fernández and Japan’s Shingo Kunieda are through to the men’s wheelchair doubles final after beating second-seeded Stéphane Houdet and Nicolas Peifer.

Updated at 13.40 BST

pre-game reading. Our man in Paris on Nadal’s ongoing love affair with Roland Garris:

And a profile of tomorrow’s teenage finalist by Caira Conner:

preamble

afternoon everyone. And welcome to the day of the men’s semifinals. According to the quarters, we’ll buckle up for a long drive. We’ll start, of course, with Rafael Nadal vs Alexander Zverev, where we’ll see how much that epic quarter-final win over Novak Djokovic has taken on the Spaniard. If his fitness continues, Nadal is well positioned to claim his 14th Roland Garros title and with Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz out of the way his chances could be boosted. But the conqueror of Alcaraz, Zverev, will present a formidable challenge. He’s sneaked slightly under the radar this French Open but his comfortable loss to Alcaraz drew attention to his threat.

Then a resurgent Marin Cilic takes on promising Norwegian Casper Ruud, who predicted he wouldn’t sleep until 4am after his four-set win over Holger Rune. Assuming he’s rested, he’ll be a real test for Cilic, who’s riding a wave after beating Daniil Medvedev and beating Andrey Rublev in a superb quarter-final on Wednesday.

Should be worth hanging around here. Nadal vs Zverev starts around 13:45 CET.