Andy Murray will face Stan Wawrinka for the 16th time in their careers in the semifinal of the French Open. Wawrinka comes into this semifinal as the defending champion, whilst Murray aims to reach his first French Open final. In a very tight head-to-head, Murray leads 8-7. However, the last two matches on clay were won by the Swiss. The winner of this match will have to take on the winner of Dominic Thiem and Novak Djokovic in the final.
Road to the semifinals
After winning in Rome, Andy Murray is playing his best season on clay so far. However, at the start of the French Open, Murray struggled to win in his first two matches. He had a tough battle in the first round against Radek Stepanek where he came back from two sets down. The second round was not easier he also had a five-set match against Mathias Bourgue. After those matches, Murray seems to have found his game. He defeated Ivo Karlovic in the third round and John Isner in the fourth round, both in straight sets.
His biggest test would be Richard Gasquet, not only Murray had to play the Frenchman who had a fantastic win over Kei Nishikori in the last round, but he was playing the crowd as Gasquet was the last remaining French. Murray lost the first set but then went on to win the next three to book his spot in the semifinals.
Prior the French Open, Wawrinka won his third title of the year in Geneva. The Swiss also didn’t have an easy first round. Just like Murray, he also had a five-set match against Lukas Rosol. In the second round, Wawrinka got a straight sets win against Taro Daniel. His good form continued when he faced his first seed, Jeremy Chardy. The Frenchman was not a problem for the defending champion who beat him in straight sets. In the fourth round, Wawrinka would play a four-set match against Viktor Troicki.
In his quarterfinal match, Wawrinka faced Spain’s Albert Ramos-Vinolas who came from a huge win over Milos Raonic. The Swiss won the first two sets without any problem, but the Spaniard pushed Wawrinka to the limit in the last set which Wawrinka would win in a tough tiebreak.
Head-to-Head
This will be the 16th meeting between them. Currently is Murray who leads 8-7, however, Wawrinka has won their meetings on clay, the first one in 2008 in Rome and more recently in 2013 at Monte Carlo. The Swiss also won their last three encounters at the ATP World Tour Finals, the US Open and Monte Carlo. The last time Murray defeated Wawrinka was in 2012 in Tokyo where he won in three sets.
Match Analysis
Wawrinka comes with a lot of confidence because of being the defending champion, however, this could also play against him as he could feel the pressure to reach his third Grand Slam final. Murray is trying to reach his first French Open final, but he is familiar with being in the French Open semifinals. Also, Murray is aware he is playing the best tennis on clay of his career. He had a very successful clay season and for sure he would like to end it with a big win in France.
Clay is a surface that suits Wawrinka better, but that doesn’t mean Murray won’t put on a fight. The Scot has worked hard to build confidence on clay and so far he’s been very consistent. Wawrinka serve could be a huge weapon, except for the fact that on the other side of the court he will find one of the best receivers on the tour. Lately, Murray’s serve has been the cause of many issues, if he wants to make this match competitive he will have to get a good first serve.
The Swiss is known as an offensive baseliner always attacking from the back. Even if he is mostly a baseline player, Wawrinka has shown his skills on the net. The Scot is an all-court player, he is known for his speed and good footwork, even on average days, Murray is able to hit powerful groundstrokes with low error rate. He is also a very defensive player due his speed. Both players possess the best backhands on tour, Wawrinka is considered to have one of the best one-handed backhands, whilst Murray has one of the best two-handed backhands.
As for weakness, Wawrinka often becomes overaggressive which leads to unforced errors. As for Murray, the Scot’s main problem is not physical but mental. Over the years he has improved his mental strength, but as a passionate player is hard for him to keep calm in stressful moments.
Prediction: Andy Murray in four sets
