Dominic Thiem was playing his third straight French Open semi-final. But unlike the last two years – where he had faced eventual champions Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal – he wasn’t the underdog on Friday.

Instead, he was playing the underdog of the tournament, unseeded Italian Marco Cecchinato, who had stunned seeds Pablo Carreno Busta, David Goffin and Novak Djokovic.

Only 24, and still in the ATP players’ characteristic erratic phase, it was evident from his reactions that he felt the pressure of being the favourite. But not for nothing has he been the second-best ATP player on clay this season and the only player to beat Nadal at clay-court Masters two years in a row.

This was Thiem’s moment to finally break through to the next level – a Grand Slam final on a surface he plays his best on. And he did just that, easier opponent notwithstanding, with a 7-5, 7-6 (12/10), 6-1 win.

In doing so, he became the youngest men’s singles Grand Slam finalist since Kei Nishikori at the 2014 US Open. And he set up a French Open final that, pardon the cliché, is a worthy clash between the king of clay and the man hailed as the prince.

But despite the straight-sets win, it wasn’t a cakewalk for the Austrian.

Smart, intuitive, gritty

Thiem got off the blocks quick with a break in the very firsts game after Cecchinato fought off with three deuces. But what was more telling was how he served and volleys to consolidate at 2-0. He had seen the Italian’s style and was making sure he was a step ahead.

Once Cecchinato found his groove after the initial upheaval, he started sending down his thunderous winners to trouble Thiem, got the break back and edged ahead at 5-4.

But an industrious Thiem responded with a strong hold and broke back at 5-5 with a sizzling forehand winner down the line, and served out the set in just 45 minutes. This second break was not just decisive, it was a intuitive point from the Austrian that showed his match awareness.

But it was in the second set that turned on the heat, momentarily. There were no breaks of serve through the 12 games, with Thiem earning three break points while giving away none.

The Italian showed the full range of his shots, smarts and court coverage as Thiem began banking on his baseline game, standing almost next to the ball kids to return the dangerous kick serves. Of course the wily Italian used this to his advantage as he repeatedly played at the net and Thiem kept missing. But once the seventh seed began to read and respond to the drops, the game changed.

The coup de grace was the tiebreaker. There were long rallies, lots of running, cleverly executed crosscourt shots, even smarter drops. Thiem had five set points, three of which he squandered very early, while Cecchinato had three of his own.

When Thiem’s set point No 4 and 5 were saved with a botched volley and a brilliant drop volley respectively, it looked like the tide might just change in the tiebreak as it had against Djokovic. But once Thiem got to 10-10 – ironically with a superb drop volley of his own – the clay-court prince was back.

The Austrian has often stuttered and suffered in crunch moments before. Take his run in this clay season for instance. He went down to Nadal and Stefanos Tsitsipas in the quarters at Monte Carlo and in Barcelona. He then went on to beat Nadal in straight sets in Madrid and seemed on course for a first Masters title before collapsing to Alexander Zverev in the finals and then losing to Fabio Fognini in the first round of the next Masters in Rome. He then played an ATP 250 tournament in Lyon the very week before French Open, an often unheard practice from a top 10 player ahead of a Slam – and won it – just to keep the momentum going.

The right zone

But throughout this French Open he has shown his consistency, overcoming Stefanos Tsitsipas, Matteo Berrettini, and Kei Nishikori in four sets and getting the better of an exhausted Alexander Zverev, the only player who can challenge the eventual finalists on clay, in the quarters.

On Friday as well, he held his nerves at the crutch moment – when he faced three set points in the second set tiebreak and worked his way back from fudging his own share of five set points. The 12-10 win in the tiebreak is what decided the match. If it had gone the other way, like when Cecchinato overcame Djokovic in the epic, Thiem could have been facing a four or a five setter.

But as it happened, he raced over the third set going 5-0 in 15 minutes and didn’t let a break point while serving for the match faze him as he sailed through to reach his first Slam final at 24.

The numbers from the match

The toughest task yet is yet to come though, when he will face someone who had reached the final at Roland Garros 10 times before and never lost. Facing a rampaging Rafael Nadal on clay is a threat any day, but on the terre battue of Court Philippe Chatrier is akin to running with the bulls.

However, Thiem not only possesses the kind of clay-court game and toolset to potentially beat Nadal, he has the rare experience of actually doing it. Both in 2017 and 2018, the Austrian youngster was the only man to beat Nadal at a clay-court Masters tournament (although he went on to lose both to Alexander Zverev) and he is well aware of the fact.

Despite his lack of big trophies, the 24-year-old is primed to make a mark with his steady form this season, as discussed in The Field’s preview. The French Open men’s singles final will be fought between the two best ATP clay-court players today. Dominic Thiem has the right momentum and machinations to make it a contest.