Saturday 6 June 2015 09:00, UK
Andy Murray takes on world No 1 Novak Djokovic for a place in the French Open final on Friday with both men revelling in arguably their best wins on clay.
While Murray saw off David Ferrer in his quarter-final, Djokovic inflicted only Rafa Nadal’s second ever defeat at Roland Garros in his last eight tie.
Having progressed through the ranks together, the pair have been involved in a number of titanic battles over the past few years but it is the Serbian who holds the advantage in the head-to-head with 18 wins to Murray’s eight.
Indeed, Djokovic has won the past seven meetings with the Brit’s last victory in the 2013 Wimbledon final.
Murray also came out on top in the US Open final the year before but it was Djokovic who came out on top in their most recent Grand Slam encounter, a four-set win in the Australian Open final earlier this year.
The duo have never met at the French Open and have only ever clashed twice on clay with Djokovic emerging victorious on both occasions.
Noticeable improvement
However, Murray has noticeably improved on the red stuff this year and believes he is getting better and better on the surface.
"Clay is a surface for me where I think, in general, experience helps on this surface," Murray said.
"A lot of players who maybe didn't grow up on it tend to have better years the more time they spend on the surface.
"So I feel like obviously this year I played much better tennis on the clay.
"I feel like I understand how I have to play on the surface better than I did in the past, I'm playing much better than I was a couple years ago."
Djokovic, and is unbeaten on the surface in 2015, winning both the Munich and Madrid Opens and acknowledges that the Scot has made big strides.
"He has improved on clay, no doubt about it," said Djokovic. "Here he's been playing some really good tennis.
"He's moving better, serving very well, and he always had a touch, one of the best ground-strokes in the game for the last 10 years since he's been really playing."
Impressive record
Not that Djokovic has struggled either, the 28-year-old has also won two clay court titles – in Monte Carlo and Rome – boasting an overall record of 40-2 in 2015.
Murray though is confident that he has done all he can to consign his rival to a third defeat of the year.
"I feel like to put yourself in a position to win against the best players in the world, it's not just about one day before the match," he said.
"It's about what you do in the whole of the build-up to it. 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."
Significant step
With Djokovic having seen off Nadal and Roger Federer losing out in the last round, both men will feel they can take a significant step towards a maiden French Open title with victory here.
Of course, the other semi-finalists Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Stan Wawrinka would have plenty to say about that and they kick off the action on the Philippe Chatrier Court.
Tsonga is aiming to become the first Frenchman to win the tournament since Yannick Noah in 1983 while Wawrinka is targeting a second Grand Slam title after victory at the Australian Open in 2014.
