Both Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal are playing down their Quarter Final match in a couple of days time, but that is not going to be the case for the fans who know the significance of a match they have been looking forward to since the draw was made. The winner of that Quarter Final will be a strong favourite to go on and add the French Open title to their Grand Slam trophies and the good news is that both Djokovic and Nadal have been playing well over the last ten days to make that match really look like it could reach the high expectation level of the fans.
It is the standout Quarter Final without a doubt, but the other men's Quarter Finals all look competitive and should be fun to watch, while the women's draw looks more open than anyone could have imagined.
Serena Williams is a big favourite to add a second French Open title to her collection in the last three years, but the likes of Petra Kvitova, Maria Sharapova and Simona Halep already out of the competition means at least one surprise Finalist will be involved at the weekend.
The defeats for Sharapova and Kvitova means I have lost both of my outright picks in the women's draw, but it has been a good tournament for the picks being made on a daily basis. Hopefully the last six days of the tournament are as successful as the first nine with the second Grand Slam of the 2015 season reaching the business end of the week.
Ana Ivanovic - 3.5 games v Elina Svitolina: Since winning the French Open title in 2008, Ana Ivanovic can only describe her Grand Slam performances as disappointing and she has underachieved at the highest level. Ivanovic has reached just two Quarter Finals in her 27 Grand Slam events since winning in Paris, but she is back in the Quarter Finals here and will be a strong favourite to beat Elina Svitolina.
Ivanovic might not have had a lot of success since 2008 at Grand Slams, but she is vastly more experienced than Svitolina who has never been beyond the Third Round previously. She also has to deal with a poor head to head record against Ivanovic having been beaten in Madrid on the clay courts there by her earlier this season as well as falling to the same opponent at the French Open twelve months ago.
It has been a much more difficult run to the Quarter Final for Ivanovic compared with Svitolina but she does have the power to rattle the Ukrainian and I think that can give her the edge in the match. The serve can be an issue for Ivanovic who is also very susceptible to dropping sets she shouldn't, which has been the case in Paris this week, but I think her experience and previous successes against Svitolina will lead her to the victory.
There is definitely some real talent on the Svitolina side of the court and she did win the title in Marrakech, but I think there will be nerves and Ivanovic can come through 63, 64.
Lucie Safarova v Garbine Muguruza: There is no hiding the fact that I am a fan of the Garbine Muguruza game and I am really expecting this player to reach the pinnacle of the women's game. One thing that has held her back at the moment is putting together all the components and finding the consistency to win enough matches and I think it is disappointing that she is as low in the World Rankings as she is with the potential the Spaniard has.
It is that inconsistency that I feel will prevent her from beating Lucie Safarova in a fascinating Quarter Final as Muguruza has matched the same stage she reached last season. It was Maria Sharapova, the eventual Champion, that had to dig deep to end the Muguruza run last season, but I think Safarova's performances won't fluctuate as much as her opponent and that is how she will battle through in three tough sets.
While Muguruza's highest level is beyond what Safarova can bring to the court, her dips within matches will give Safarova every chance to pull away. This is the second Quarter Final that Safarova has reached in four Grand Slam events and she is finally beginning to reach the level that her potential suggested she could.
Safarova has won a big event in Doha already this season so I don't think she will be overwhelmed even though she won a huge match against Sharapova on Monday. Backing those kind of wins up can be tough, but I think Safarova's steady performance will see off Muguruza's fluctuating one albeit in three tough sets.
This should be a really high quality tennis match though, one filled with drama as Safarova reaches her second Slam Semi Final within the last twelve months.
Kei Nishikori 3-1 v Jo-Wilfried Tsonga: The French crowd have seen a number of their hopes knocked out of the French Open in the last couple of days and the last hope is Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. While his game has always been more suited to the faster surfaces, Tsonga is a former Semi Finalist here and will be hoping that experience can help him beat Kei Nishikori, although it is a big ask against an improving player.
This has been a really good tournament for Tsonga who is recovering from an injury and it was unexpected to see him reach the Quarter Final. Some of the performances have been very good and I think he will trouble Nishikori at times, but the Japanese player is more suited to this surface.
Nishikori has found a way to get the better of Tsonga more often than not in their previous matches because of his ability to get plenty of balls back in play. He can wear down the Frenchman through his superior fitness on the court, and Nishikori can also find a way to attack the Tsonga backhand while his movement can extract errors from the Tsonga game.
With the aggression Tsonga has, it is easy to see him taking at least a set in this match, but I think the home crowd won't get too much joy by the time it is all said and done. Nishikori has shown he is well suited to the clay courts with title wins at Barcelona in 2014 and 2015 and he is finally showing that at this Grand Slam.
The first couple of sets are likely to be split before Nishikori begins to just wear down Tsonga in a 36, 76, 64, 64 win.
Roger Federer - 3.5 games v Stan Wawrinka: The all-Swiss Quarter Final between Roger Federer and Stan Wawrinka on Tuesday is another quality match that has been put together in the men's draw at the French Open. Stan Wawrinka will be happy he got a full day of rest after crushing Gilles Simon on Sunday before the rain came down, but Roger Federer will also be very happy about his form after dismissing Gael Monfils who had won the last couple of matches between the pair on a clay court.
This match has seen some real tension between the players who do seem fairly close off the court, but their match at Wimbledon last year and then more infamously at the O2 Arena in the World Tour Finals has seen those tensions come to the fore.
It is Federer who has got the better of recent matches between the two players, but generally matches between them have been close. Federer did beat Wawrinka comfortably in Rome ahead of this tournament, but that was Wawrinka coming in off an impressive win over Rafael Nadal and he won't have any emotional win to recover from this time.
Wawrinka has made it through the draw comfortably in Paris, although this is the hardest test he would have faced by some distance. If Wawrinka serves well, he will have a chance for the upset because he has the power off the ground to give Federer problems while he should also win the backhand rallies that develop more often than not.
However, I think Federer feels a little disrespected that he is not being talked about as a potential winner here and his performances so far have been impressive. He has not served to his full potential, but I think Federer is in a better place mentally than Wawrinka and can use that to come through and move into the Semi Finals.
Federer needs to serve well, but doing that will give him a chance to come through with a 63, 36, 63, 64 win.
MY PICKS: Ana Ivanovic - 3.5 Games @ 1.90 Boyle Sports (2 Units)
Lucie Safarova @ 2.00 Bet365 (2 Units)
Kei Nishikori Win 3-1 @ 4.00 Sporting Bet (1 Unit)
Roger Federer - 3.5 Games @ 1.83 Bet Victor (2 Units)
French Open Update: 37-29, + 10.56 Units (130 Units Staked, + 8.12% Yield)
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