Giant killers cross paths; Sharapova out

PARIS – When the French Open ends, Robin Soderling wants to be remembered for more than merely ending Rafael Nadal’s four-year reign.

Soderling wants to succeed Nadal as champion.

The Swede’s improbable run at Roland Garros has reached the semifinals, and he’ll face Fernando Gonzalez on Friday. In 22 Grand Slam tournaments, it’s the first time Soderling has advanced beyond the third round.

“I don’t want to be too happy, because I have another match coming up,” he said.

As an encore to his upset of Nadal, the No. 23-seeded Soderling beat No. 10 Nikolay Davydenko, 6-1, 6-3, 6-1. Davydenko twice reached the French Open semifinals and was singled out by Roger Federer as this week’s potential champion, but Soderling keeps defying expectations in Paris.

The Swede has beaten three consecutive players whose best surface is clay - Davydenko, Nadal and Spaniard David Ferrer. He’ll face another experienced clay-courter in the No. 12-seeded Gonzalez, who became the first Chilean since 1960 to reach the Roland Garros semifinals when he beat No. 3 Andy Murray, 6-3, 3-6, 6-0, 6-4.

Part of the charm at Roland Garros is its tradition for unpredictable outcomes. Before Nadal became the king of clay, the tournament produced plenty of surprise winners.

Five men in the Open era won their first clay-court title in Paris, most recently Gustavo Kuerten in 1997. And whoever wins this year’s men’s title will be a first-time French Open champion.

The quarterfinals scheduled for Wednesday matched Federer against Frenchman Gael Monfils, and Juan Martin del Potro against Tommy Robredo.

In the women’s semifinals Thursday, top-ranked Dinara Safina will face No. 20-seeded Dominika Cibulkova. Safina hopes to reach the final for the third time in the past five major events, while Cibulkova is playing in her first Grand Slam semifinal.

On Tuesday, Cibulkova swept the first 11 games and beat a weary, rusty Maria Sharapova, 6-0, 6-2. (AP)