Federer, Nadal closing in on dream final

PARIS: For the first time in 21 years, the top four seeds have reached the semi-finals of the French Open in Paris.

And while many purists may be hoping for a dream Roger Federer-Rafael Nadal final, two very in-form players are determined to spoil the party.

Switzerland's world number one Federer will be up first on Friday against Argentinian David Nalbandian, one of the few players against whom he has a losing record.

Neither is a clay specialist but Nalbandian feels physical conditioning will have more of a bearing on the result than the surface.

"I have won and lost against him on all surfaces," Nalbandian said. "The surface is not what I'm worried about. It's more on what the conditions will be, how fit we are."

Reigning champion Nadal, the pair's most likely final opponent, also thinks it will be a tight match to call.

When asked who he thought the favourite was, he replied:  "Who is the number one? He is the favourite but for sure Nalbandian can beat him."

Nalbandian's 6-5 head-to-head advantage, though, owes much to the fact that he won the pair's first five meetings, before Federer started to dominate men's tennis.

Although he has since lost five of the last six, he did win the most important of those at last year's Masters Cup final in Shanghai where he came back from two sets to love down to claim the title, 7-6 in the decider.