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Tonight could be a significant night for the small European country of Latvia, as their best ever player, Ernests Gulbis, looks to progress to his first – and his country’s first – Grand Slam final.
Join The Roar live from 8:30pm AEST for a live blog into the match.
Standing in his way is Novak Djokovic, a player who knows all about the pressure of delivering for his country.
Djokovic became the first player from Serbia to win a Grand Slam title.
His win at the 2008 Australian Open was the first by Serbia since they separated from Montenegro in 2006 and became a nation of their own.
Gulbis – in similar ways to Djokovic with Serbia – has been the trailblazer for Latvia.
He was the first player to compete in a Grand Slam under the flag of Latvia.
He was also the first player into the top 100, 50 and 20 from Latvia.
With his 6 ATP titles he is also the only player from Latvia with title wins in the ATP.
On Monday, regardless of the result tonight, he will be the first Latvian player in the top ten in the rankings.
To those who know him, and follow him, the form he has shown over the last two weeks has been no surprise.
To the rest of us, people would have stood up and said who in the world is this guy?
He is a player who has had the potential, but failed to deliver on the big stage.
A combination of attitude, lack of hard work, and a commitment to tennis has hindered the potential.
The turning point of his career was Delray Beach last year.
Outside of the top 100, and struggling to get into ATP events, Gulbis qualified for the event and won the title in the United States.
The title triggered his passion for tennis and he has climbed the rankings since, winning four titles along the way.
This included the title in Nice the week before the French Open.
Gulbis has been dominant in France this year.
He is undefeated in 3 tournaments – including Roland Garros – and has won 13 straight matches.
Gulbis has been the player of the tournament so far, both on the clay, and off it.
His interviews have gained attention, like they always do, but his tennis is also talking.
And it is talking in a big way.
His win against Federer in the 4th round was the best match at Roland Garros this year.
Federer played well, but Gulbis played better, and for parts of the match was the dominant player on the baseline.
He deserved to win against Federer and showed his devastating form against Berdych in the quarter finals, with a dominant straight sets win.
If he plays like he did against Federer then he can beat Djokovic tonight.
But Djokovic is at another level this year.
His record on clay this season – 13-1 – has been similar to the form he showed in 2011 when he went undefeated until the semi-final at Roland Garros..
He has only lost to Roger Federer at Monte Carlo but importantly defeated Rafael Nadal at Rome just before the event.
He has only lost 3 matches this year, with all of them coming against Swiss players.
Most experts have said he has his best chance to win the French Open this year.
With Nadal having shock losses on clay this year, and Djokovic winning the last encounter between the two, you almost have to agree with them.
He now knows what it takes to beat everyone on clay and came close to winning against Nadal at the 2012 French Open final when it went to five sets.
Djokovic in 2014 has cruised into the semi-finals and only lost one set to Marin Cilic in the 3rd round.
His preparation has been almost perfect for the clash with Gulbis.
He will know how dangerous the Latvian is and will be prepared for everything that is thrown at him.
The two have met five times in the ATP with Djokovic leading the ledger 4-1.
Gulbis’ only win came in Brisbane in 2009 when he defeated Novak in straight sets.
Included in those matches is their battle at the 2008 French Open which Djokovic won in three tight sets.
Tonight’s contest will be similar to the contest in 2008 when Djokovic won 7-5 7-6 7-5.
It will be close, tight, and it will go to at least four or five sets.
Djokovic is a big favourite with the bookies but this match is far closer than what they are predicting.
Gulbis can trouble Djokovic with his baseline play and I expect him to be on top at stages of the match.
Whether the occasion gets to Gulbis remains to be seen.
Whether Gulbis can control the play for long enough to capitalise will also be a crucial question in the match.
Djokovic is favourite and should win the match with the form he is in.
Don’t be surprised though if Gulbis defeats him or makes him earn his final spot at Roland Garros.
Djokovic to win in five sets.
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