Andy Murray preserved his 100 percent claycourt record in 2015 to reach the French Open semi-finals with a 7-6(4), 6-2, 5-7, 6-1 win over Spanish warrior David Ferrer on Wednesday.
While the rest of tennis world was transfixed with the Novak Djokovic-Rafa Nadal blockbuster that was simultaneously being played out on the main Philippe Chatrier stage, Murray went about his task in a businesslike manner to reach the last four here for the third time.
A backhand volley winner gave him the first set, and after squandering a match point in the third set, the British third seed sealed his 15th successive victory on red dirt with an un-returnable serve.
The win was particularly satisfying for the man, who as a precocious 15-year-old with big dreams, honed his craft in the Sanchez-Casal Academy as he had never beaten the world number eight in four previous meetings on clay.
"To put yourself in position to win against the best players in the world, it's not just about one day before the match. It's about what you do in the whole of the buildup to it," said the 28-year-old, who will face world number one Djokovic for a place in the final.
"And going into the match having not lost on clay this year and having some big wins on the surface is important for me. I will just keep doing what I have been doing."
Against claycourt lover Ferrer, he executed his plan well.
Even when Murray allowed a 3-1 lead to slip through his sweaty fingers and allowed Ferrer to go toe-toe into a first set tiebreak, he maintained a calm demeanour rather than shouting out his frustrations as is so often the case.
That cool headedness propelled him into a 6-2 lead and a backhand volley winner handed him the set.
The second set was textbook claycourt tennis from a player who until a month ago had never won a title on dirt.
The confidence he gained by winning back-to-back titles in Munich and Madrid was in evidence as even when he failed to capitalise on a matchpoint on Ferrer's serve at 5-4 in the third set, he did not let his focus slip.
Instead he channelled his frustrations to come within one game of handing Ferrer the dreaded bagel in the fourth set and sent his opponent packing.
"It's obviously frustrating when you lose a match point... I was frustrated to lose that set for sure. But I got off to a good start in the fourth set, so my frustration didn't last long," he said.
