Tennis: Thiem aware of task Nadal will present in French Open

Dominic Thiem is under no illusions about the size of the task ahead of him as he chases his first grand slam title.

Having pulled off the best win of his career to knock out defending champion Novak Djokovic in the quarter-finals, the young Austrian now finds himself facing nine-time champion Rafael Nadal in today’s last-four clash.

No man has beaten Djokovic and Nadal back-to-back and won a grand slam, and even if Thiem were to get past the Spaniard, he would still have to defeat either former champion Stan Wawrinka or three-time grand slam winner Andy Murray in the final.