ROLAND GARRUS: Russian Pavlyuchenkova enters maiden Slam final at her 50th major tournament

The  29-year-old’s  7-5,  6-3  win  made  her  the  woman  with  the  most  attempts  needed  to  reach  the  final  of  one of the four majors. It was reward for her patience throughout a career that has earned her 12 titles, and for her  calmness  against  a  player  who  blew hot and cold.“I am tired and so happy, it is very emotional,”   Pavlyuchenkova   said   on  Court  Philippe  Chatrier.

“I  tried  to  fight  very  hard  and  work  on  the  tactical  side.  It  is  important  to  stay  focused and in the right zone for the final on Saturday,” she added. While  31st  seed  Pavlyuchenkova  had reached the quarter-finals at six Grand   Slams,   Zidansek   had   man-aged  only  three  match  wins  at  majors  before  arriving  in  Paris.

The  latter’s destructive forehand worked well  initially  and  she  broke  Pavly-uchenkova’s  opening  service  game  before holding to love. But, Zidansek missed a smash at 2-1  as  Pavlyuchenkova  got  back  on  level terms. The Russian then broke for  a  5-3  lead.  Zidansek  broke  back  and  was  15-40  when  Pavlyuchenko-va  served  at  5-5,  but  could  not  convert  the  important  chance.

Pavlyuchenkova     absorbed     Zidansek's     best  shots  and  was  gifted  the  first  set with a double-fault.The  Russian  forged  4-1  ahead  in  the  second  set  and  snuffed  out  an  attempted      Zidansek      comeback,      clinching  victory  when  her  opponent blazed a backhand wide. “Pavlyuchenkova was able to control the match  tactically,”  Marion  Bartoli  told ITV Sport.Djokovic   sets   up   semis   clash   with Nadal: A fired-up Novak Djokovic repelled a stirring fightback by Italian Matteo Berrettini to clinch a 6-3, 6-2, 6-7(5), 7-5 victory on Wednesday  and  set  up  a  mouth-watering  semi-final  showdown  with  defending   champion   Rafael   Nadal.   The   victory  at  one  stage  looked  like  a  formality  but  became  increasingly  fraught   as   Berrettini   threw   the   kitchen sink at Serb Djokovic, who becomes  only  the  second  man  to  reach 40 Grand Slam semi-finals after Roger Federer.

Salisbury-Krawczyk   pair   clinches   mixed  doubles  title:  Joe  Salisbury  ended Great Britain’s 39-year wait for a main draw title at the French Open when  he  combined  with  American  Desirae  Krawczyk  to  win  the  mixed  doubles  crown  at  Roland  Garros  on  Thursday.  Krawczyk  and  Salisbury  rallied  from  a  set  down  to  beat  the  Russian pairing of Elena Vesnina and Aslan Karatsev 2-6, 6-4, 10-5.