Rafael Nadal vs Dominic Thiem: Watch 2017 French Open semi-finals online
Rafael Nadal, the King of Clay, is just two wins away from an unprecedented 10th Roland Garros championship. On Friday evening, the Spaniard would face a stern test against Austria's Dominic Thiem in the semi-finals of the 2017 French Open. Nadal is the favourite but Thiem is no pushover.
Thiem, renowned for his relentless attack and powerful baseline shots, had defeated Nadal 6-4, 6-3 during the quarter-final of last month's Rome Masters. In fact, the 23-year-old remains the only player who owns a victory over Nadal during the 2017 clay-court season.
Earlier in the year, Thiem was overwhelmed by the Spaniard in back-to-back finals at Madrid and Barcelona before returning the favour during the quarter-final of the Italian Open. Thiem walked into the 2017 French Open with the third best odds to win the championship. On Wednesday, he validated those expectations by crushing defending champion Novak Djokovic in straight sets in the 2017 French Open quarter-final.
On paper, Nadal is the odds-on favourite. But the Spaniard knows that the red-hot Thiem poses a legitimate threat. "He’s a very good player. He hits the ball very hard. He’s very powerful on both sides. Forehand, backhand, serve. These weapons are quite good. He steps in the court. He has a huge potential to tap, and he can hit the ball very hard," Nadal said on the eve of the 2017 French Open semi-final, via The Telegraph.
Thiem is entering only his second Grand Slam semi-final. "I mean, it's a joke how tough it is to win a Slam. Now I beat Novak. On Friday, (it's) Nadal. In the finals, there is another top star. That's why it's a slam because it's such a tough achievement. I just have to watch that I'm not giving him his favourite positions on the forehand. I mean, it's one of the best shots I think ever in tennis. So anyway, you cannot avoid it all the time. I will concede some winners on Friday," said the ATP Next Gen star.
Rafael Nadal is now 22-1 on clay this year, which includes victories at Monte-Carlo, Barcelona and Madrid. A week after celebrating his 31st birthday, Nadal marched into the semi-finals of the 2017 French Open after fellow Spaniard Pablo Carreno Busta retired midway through the second set of their quarter-finals match. He has the opportunity to become the first player in the Open Era to win a Grand Slam on ten occasions. Rafael Nadal vs Dominic Thiem live streaming, French Open live streaming and tennis live streaming info follows.
Rafael Nadal vs Dominic Thiem live stream: Watch French Open semi-finals online
Start time: 11:30 p.m. (AEST), 3:30 p.m. (Local Time, CEST), 9:30 a.m. (ET)
On TV: Fox Sports (Australia), Tennis Channel / NBC Sports (USA)
Live Stream: Tennis TV (Global), Foxtel Play / Foxtel Go (Australia), NBC Sports (USA)
