Novak Djokovic has said facing Rafael Nadal for the 58th time on Friday, with a place in the French Open final on the line, will be “a great battle” against his “biggest ever rival”. 

Djokovic secured the eagerly-awaited clash when he reached his 40th Grand Slam semi-final with a 6-3, 6-2, 6-7 (5/7), 7-5 win over Italy’s Matteo Berrettini. 
It will be his 11th appearance in the last-four in Paris where he was champion in 2016. Nadal, the 13-time winner, beat Argentina’s Diego Schwartzman 6-3, 4-6, 6-4, 6-0 to make the semi-finals for the 14th time.