The two favorites in the bottom half of the French Open draw are through to a semifinal tilt on Friday. It will be No. 2 seed Andy Murray going up against defending champ Stan Wawrinka. A three-team panel makes its predictions.
(3) Stan Wawrinka vs. (2) Andy Murray
Ricky: There are plenty of arguments for both sides of this blockbuster semifinal showdown at Roland Garros. Wawrinka tuned up for this event by triumphing on the clay courts of Geneva. More importantly, he has to be confident as the defending French Open champion. The No. 3 seed did not play like it earlier in the tournament, but he has performed well since scraping through his opener against Lukas Rosol in five sets. Wawrinka is also 3-0 in his last three matchups with Murray.
But Murray was not particularly interested when they squared off at the World Tour Finals last fall (he wanted to head to the clay courts of Belgium for the Davis Cup final). The second-ranked Scot will obviously be exceedingly motivated this time around, two wins away from his third slam title and first in Paris. Since surviving five-setters against Radek Stepanek and Mathias Bourgue, Murray has been outstanding. It would also be foolish to forget Murray’s form leading into this fortnight : he extended Novak Djokovic to three sets in Madrid and upset him in the Rome final. Wawrinka, on the other hand, has not defeated a top 10 opponent this entire year. This is Murray’s third consecutive French Open semifinal; the third time will be the charm. Murray 6-2, 4-6, 7-5, 6-3.
Pete Ziebron: Wawrinka and Murray struggled mightily in their opening matches, both being extended to five sets. In Murray’s case he also needed to go the distance in the second round, as he was forced to play 10 sets of tennis against the world No. 128 and world No. 164. Since that time, both men have steadied their respective games, successfully advanced, and now meet for the 16th time in their careers.
Wawrinka has quietly won three titles this year, but it certainly feels like Murray’s lone title in 2016 (Rome, over Djokovic in the final) towers over the accomplishments by the Swiss. That being said, Wawrinka is beginning to feel comfortable at the place where he won his second career major last season. The Swiss has won the last three meetings with Murray and concurrently enjoys a seven-set winning streak over the Brit. Wawrinka will be on to the final once again. Wawrinka 6-3, 6-7(3), 6-4, 7-5.
Adam Leigh: At first look it seems like Wawrinka just isn’t playing well enough to beat Murray and go on to defend his French Open crown. But, in truth, he didn’t look like he was playing very well before he won last year’s title. Earlier this season the Swiss looked slightly out of shape and somewhat disinterested, but for the second time in a row he has come alive on the terre battue of Roland Garros. All of a sudden he looks fit, his footwork and set up are assured, and he’s teeing off from both wings with real purpose.
There’s no question Murray has improved on the clay; he’s more patient and willing to construct points from behind the baseline than he had been in the past. He excels at taking time away from his opponents even on slow surfaces. Wawrinka, though, has always given him problems–precisely because the world No. 4 doesn’t need a lot of time to get through his wonderfully efficient strokes. Wawrinka has never been short of belief than his best game is more than a match for any of the “Big 4.” For all Murray’s improvement and his exceptional athleticism, he’s still not a pure clay-courter, Wawrinka will expose that in the semifinal on his eventual way to a successful defense of the title. Wawrinka 6-4, 7-5, 3-6, 7-6.
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