Rafael Nadal owns Roland Garros.
The 13-time French Open champion, who was knocked out of the clay court major in the semi-final last year, has fought his way into the semis this year before he was handed a spot in the final after Alexander Zverev retired injured.
Locked at 6-6 in the 2nd set after Nadal took the opening set 7-6 (8), Zverev slipped while trying to retrieve a shot, rolling his ankle. He came out on crutches before retiring.
Although Nadal was hampered by a chronic foot injury that saw him out in the last 16 of the Italian Open, an event that precedes the French Open, the 21-time Grand Slam champion has looked largely pain-free in his bid for a 14th French Open crown.
Nadal started strongly by dismantling Australian Jordan Thompson in the opening round with a 6-2, 6-2, 6-2 win.
Nadal broke for 2-1 with a backhand volley winner and his massive forehand helped him quickly move 4-1 up. He made a few unusual unforced errors, but pocketed the game comfortably.
Nadal broke serve in the first game of the second set and again in the fifth and seventh before he played almost error-free tennis to win the game with a service.
Thompson broke back early in third set, held it together until 2-2, when Nadal broke with a forehand volley and cruised thereafter.
Nadal then followed that up with another mauling, this time of local hope Corentin Moutet 6-3, 6-1, 6-4 for his 300th Grand Slam match victory.
Playing under the lights at Court Philippe Chatrier, Nadal peppered the red clay with winners from both his forehand and backhand in the first two sets and broke his serve four times. Moutet took a 2-0 lead in the third, but that was all Nadal afforded him before breaking again to seal victory on his first match point.
He then went on to hammer 26th seed Botic van de Zandschulp from Holland 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 in the third round before surviving a scare from Canadian ninth seed Felix Auger-Aliassime.
A protege of his Uncle Toni, Auger-Aliassime stretched Nadal in a four-hour 21-minute encounter before Rafa pulled off a 3-6, 6-3, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 win.
After that long match, Nadal was to the task against Novak Djokovic in the quarters, not dropping intensity even once, not even in the second set, before a 6-2, 4-6, 6-2, 7-6(4) win.
It was vintage Nadal on his favourite court ripping to shreds all the returns showered by Djokovic from the other end. Nadal threw the punches and had the defending champion on the ropes in a high octane start under the spotlights.
Djokovic fought back in an 88-minute second set, but on the back on a supportive crowd Nadal came back to finish it off in four sets to reach the semis.
For a look at Rafael Nadal's magical run to the final, please click the images:
IMAGE: Nadal in action during his first round match against Jordan Thompson. Photograph: Gonzalo Fuentes/Reuters
IMAGE: Nadal beat local hope Corentin Moutet to record his 300th Grand Slam win. Photograph: Ryan Pierse/Getty Images
IMAGE: Rafa hammered Dutchman Botic van de Zandschulp to advance. Photograph: Pascal Rossignol/Reuters
IMAGE: Nadal was given a scare by Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime in the fourth round. Auger-Aliassime is a protege of Rafa's 'Uncle Toni', his former coach. Photograph: Adam Pretty/Getty Images
IMAGE: Rafa kept the intensity high to record a four-set win over Novak Djokovic after a four-hour contest. Photograph: Clive Brunskill/Getty Images
IMAGE: Rafa had to dive deep into his resources against Alexander Zverev, before moving into the final after Sasha retired injured. Photograph: Adam Pretty/Getty Images
