Duo face major tests against top two

Nikolay Davydenko and Novak Djokovic will have to produce career-best performances on Friday if they are to prevent it from being another Roger Federer-Rafael Nadal final at the French Open.

Federer and Nadal, the top two in the world by some distance, have dominated the men’s game for the past three years and are heavy favourites to meet each other again on Sunday in a repeat of last year’s Roland Garros showpiece.

Only Davydenko and Djokovic, two players who have never made it to a grand slam final, stand in their way.

They have both shown over the past week and a half that they have the ability to cause an upset in the semi-finals.

Fourth seed Davydenko breezed through his first three matches without dropping a set, before seeing off seeded rivals David Nalbandian and Guillermo Canas with the loss of just one set to clinch a clash with Federer.

Djokovic, the sixth seed, is one of three Serbs to have made it into the last four of either the men’s or women’s singles, and has improved as the tournament has gone on.

After struggling past Frenchman Olivier Patience in five sets in the third round, he has stepped up a gear and swept past Fernando Verdasco and Igor Andreev, both dangerous customers on clay, to set up a date with Nadal.

Davydenko has not beaten Federer, the top seed here, in eight previous attempts, although only one of those matches was played on the dirt.

The Russian’s temperament and all-round game is improving and he is not discounting victory against the Swiss star.

“It will depend on how I go into the match, on how I prepare for the match,” said the 25-year-old, who has appeared in two grand slam semis – at the French Open in 2005 and the US Open last year.

“I have always had a chance to beat him, he always finds trouble against me.

“You need to play your best game against Federer. That‘s all I need to find!”

Federer, the world number one since 2004, wants a first Roland Garros title to complete his clean sweep of the majors.

He has 10 to his name already, and the closest he has come at the French Open was last year when he lost in four sets to Nadal in the final.

On Davydenko, the Swiss said: “I think he’s a great player, and I’ve had some great matches with him over the years.

“He’s really improved over the years, and he’s got more consistent. He’s tough to play against.”

Federer has also dropped just one set – to Tommy Robredo in the quarter-finals - in his run to the semis.

In the other semi-final, Djokovic will attempt to become the first player to defeat Nadal at Roland Garros.

The Spaniard stretched his unbeaten sequence here to 16 matches with a straight-sets demolition of close friend and fellow Mallorcan Carlos Moya in the last eight on Wednesday.

Indeed, he is the only man yet to drop a set this tournament and has lost just once on clay – to Federer – since April 2005.

The spin Nadal puts on his forehand makes him almost impossible to attack, and his court coverage and low error count are second to none.

Djokovic has beaten the Spaniard once in their four previous meetings, on the hard courts of Miami.

But in their two matches on clay, the Serb has not won a set.

They met in the quarter-finals at Roland Garros last year, but Djokovic was forced to retire injured prior to the start of the third set when he was already 6-4 6-4 down.

“He’s the best player in the world on this surface,” said Djokovic.

“I’m going to do my best – I have beaten him once so that can help me.

“He’s a big favourite whoever he plays against on this surface, but I hope it will be a good match.”

Nadal, looking to become the first man since Bjorn Borg in 1980 to win three straight Roland Garros titles, is wary of underestimating his semi-final opponent.

“He’s a great player with a lot of confidence,” said the 21-year-old.

“His potential is huge. He has a great serve, which is an advantage, and he is young. He is a potential world number one.”