Djokovic-Murray suspended; Wawrinka reaches first French Open final

Stan Wawrinka secured a berth in his first-ever French Open final, but his opponent won't be determined until Saturday after the other semifinal between Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray was suspended because of fading light and a less than favorable weather forecast Friday evening in Paris.

The world No. 1 Djokovic was leading the third-seeded Murray 6-3, 6-3, 5-7, 3-3 when officials came onto the court at Chatrier to let the players know that play was done for the day -- much to the chagrin of the paying customers.

The reigning Australian Open and Wimbledon champion Djokovic can complete a coveted career Grand Slam with a pair of match wins this weekend. If so, he would join seven other men on that elite list: Fred Perry, Don Budge, Rod Laver, Roy Emerson, Andre Agassi, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, who lost to Djokovic here on Wednesday. Nadal had won five straight and nine of the previous 10 French Open titles.

The first semi on Day 13 of this fortnight saw the eighth-seeded Wawrinka hold off 14th-seeded heavy French crowd favorite Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in four sets, 6-3, 6-7 (1-7), 7-6 (7-3), 6-4, as the 2014 Aussie Open champ Wawrinka became only the second Swiss man to reach the final at Roland Garros, joining the 2009 champion and four-time runner-up Federer.

In the nightcap, Djokovic appeared to be on his way to a straight-set victory over Murray, easily winning the first two sets with the help of service breaks in each stanza. The two players were knotted in the third when Murray sprung to life.

Following 15 easy holds by Djokovic, Murray had failed to enjoy even one break-point chance until the 11th game of the third set. And he made it count.

The British star notched his first break of the match and promptly consolidated it with a key hold to force a fourth set.

In the fourth, a determined Murray broke for a 2-1 lead, but Djokovic broke right back to level things at 2-all.

The Serbian star then held for a 3-2 lead and was pressing for another break in the sixth game, but Murray held on for his hold, and Day 13 was over. The two men had played for 3 hours, 8 minutes when they were sent to the locker room.

The high-flying Djokovic was displaying his typical qualities of great serving, powerful and precise groundstrokes and an amazing return game. And it seemed like simply just too much for Murray early on, but the Brit persevered to stay alive in the tournament, with the help of 11 aces.

Djokovic has beaten the two-time major champion Murray seven straight times on tour.

Djokovic is 18-8 lifetime against Murray, including 5-2 at the Slams. The Serb bested the Brit in January's Aussie Open finale.

The 28-year-old Djokovic, who lost to Nadal in two of the previous three French Open finals, including last year, has won his last 27 matches overall, including a perfect 14-0 mark on clay this year.

Murray, like Djokovic, is undefeated on clay this season, at 15-0. The Brit is 8-7 in his career major semifinals, including an 0-2 mark at the French.

In Friday's opening semi, Wawrinka comfortably took the first set against Tsonga, as he broke the Frenchman in the fourth game and then served out the rest of the way for the lead.

Tsonga, however, fought back in the second amid sunny and hot conditions.

Down a break at 3-4, Tsonga got the break right back and eventually forced a tiebreak, which he dominated by racing out to a 6-0 lead and winning seven- of-eight points.

Wawrinka rebounded by claiming the third set via tiebreak and then opened the fourth set with a big service break. The Swiss then held his own serve the rest of the way and converted on his first match point when Tsonga netted a forehand return for his 53rd unforced error to send Wawrinka into his second career Grand Slam final.

The Lausanne native Wawrinka stunned Nadal in last year's Aussie Open title tilt.

Wawrinka is now 4-3 lifetime against Tsonga, including 2-1 at Roland Garros. The Swiss topped the Frenchman in the round of 32 in Paris in 2011 and Tsonga bested Wawrinka in the round of 16 the following year.

Tsonga fell to 0-2 in his career French Open semifinals and 1-5 in Grand Slam semis overall. He was trying to become the first French men's Roland Garros finalist since Henri Leconte in 1988. The last French man to win it was Yannick Noah in 1983.

The 30-year-old Wawrinka will appear in his 19th career final, seeking a 10th title. He captured championships in Chennai and Rotterdam earlier this season.

The "Stanimal" had never reached a French Open semifinal prior to this week. He's now 2-2 in his career Grand Slam semis, including a loss against Djokovic at the Aussie back in January.

The 2015 Roland Garros champion will pocket $2.05 million, while the loser will settle for just over $1 million.

[SportsNetwork.com]