Jul 3, 2008 - 3:35 PM
0 shoutsWIMBLEDON, England (Ticker) -- Rainer Schuettler had to wait quite a while to set up his daunting showdown with Rafael Nadal.
In a marathon match of that lasted more than five hours over two days, Schuettler advanced to the Wimbledon semifinals Thursday, posting a grueling 6-3, 5-7, 7-6 (8-6), 6-7 (7-9), 8-6 victory over Frenchman Arnaud Clement.
It marked just the second time in 38 attempts that the 32-year-old Schuettler has reached a major semifinal. The unseeded German's best Grand Slam performance came in the 2003 Australian Open, where he reached the final only to lose to Andre Agassi.
On Thursday, a pair of journeymen nearing the end of their careers gave the Wimbledon fans something to remember.
"I have to say it could go both ways," said Schuettler, the oldest player remaining in the draw. "I'm just happy to make it through. Definitely, it's one of my matches that I will always remember."
More than five years later, Schuettler will face an equally daunting challenge in the second-seeded Nadal, who has dropped just one of 16 sets through his first five matches at this year's third major.
Schuettler also will be hard-pressed to beat Nadal considering his packed schedule here at the All England Club.
"I have nothing to lose," Schuettler said. "I just go out there, have fun, try to make it as hard for him as possible."
Following Nadal's quarterfinal victory Wednesday over Andy Murray, Schuettler and Clement each won one set before their match was suspended due to darkness. They also endured two rain delays Thursday.
In a match with numerous momentum swings, Schuettler appeared to be in control after winning the third-set tiebreaker and jumping to a 4-1 lead in the fourth set. But he was broken on serve in the sixth game, and Clement roared back to even the match.
Schuettler appeared unnerved, as Clement broke again to go up 2-0 in the fifth set. However, Schuettler got back the break in the next game and the players remained on serve. At 4-5, the German saved one match point in a four-deuce game.
Schuettler broke to go up 6-5, but Clement returned the favor to pull even yet again. The players combined for 15 breaks in a match that officially lasted five hours, 12 minutes, excluding the pair of rain delays.
At 15-40 in the 13th game, rain began falling again, and Schuettler called for play to be stopped. However, the match was allowed to continue, enabling Clement to win two points to get to deuce before the players were called off the court.
As he was leaving, Schuettler expressed his displeasure, but the second rain delay worked out well for him. When play resumed, Schuettler recorded his eighth break, then closed out the match on serve.
The 30-year-old Clement also was looking to reach only his second career grand slam semifinals. In 2001, he reached the Australian Open final, also falling to Agassi in straight sets.
After coming so close to victory, Clement seemed emotionally drained.
"It was a fantastic match today," he said. "But when you are so close to win the match, quarterfinal in a Grand Slam. ... You have a chance on match point and you finally lose the match, it's tough to say. It's just a little bit hard for the moment."
While Schuettler may not have much left emotionally and physically against Nadal, reaching the semifinal here is the highlight of his year. He came into the tournament ranked 94th, and his best result was a semifinal showing in Dresden last month.
Schuettler will have little time to rest as he faces Nadal on Friday. The other semifinals pits world No. 1 Roger Federer against Russian Marat Safin.
