Rafael Nadal overcame world number one and defending champion Novak Djokovic in a four hour epic to reach the semi-finals of the French Open.
The tournament's most successful ever player beat his Serbian opponent in a 6-2 4-6 6-2 7-6 (4) win that began at 8.45pm in May and finished at 1.15am in June during a Paris clash that saw temperatures as low as 12C.
Nadal was in supreme form
And his opponent later admitted the better man won
The result means Nadal hangs on to his status as the most successful men's singles player in the Open Era, and could win his 22nd Grand Slam, moving two ahead of Djokovic and Roger Federer.
Djokovic was denied the chance to draw level at the Australian Open earlier this year due to his COVID-19 vaccine status, and Nadal eventually won in Melbourne.
However, despite being the master of clay, Nadal was seen as second favourite against his old foe, due to injury and the lateness of the game which played into his opponent's hands.
But the Spaniard took the impetus from the off, dominating the first 11 games of the match to take the first set and a 3-0 lead in the second.
The world no.1 eventually fought back to claim the second set, and despite having momentum on his side, Nadal brilliantly stopped the tide to dominate and win the third.
Djokovic had two set points in the fourth, but both were saved by Nadal who then won a tie break which he led 6-1 before denying a fightback from his opponent.
Djokovic enjoyed some success on the night
But Nadal's resilience was too strong
The 59th meeting of the two all-time sporting greats was finally ended by a Nadal backhand winner, setting him up for a semi-final clash against third seed Alexander Zverev.
Nadal explained just what it took to overcome his favoured opponent, with his fight from the off key to taking Djokovic down.
"The only way to win against him is to play your best from the first point to the last," he said. "A magic night for me.
"A very tough match, Novak is one of the best players in history and playing against him is always an amazing challenge. Today was another one."
Nadal was keen to pay tribute to his opponent post-match
Djokovic, though, was full of praise for his opponent who he acknowledged played better.
The two-time winner said: "He was a better player, I think, in the important moments, he started very well, I didn't start so great.
"I was gaining momentum, managed to win the second set and thought OK, you know, I'm back in the game.
"But then he had another two, three fantastic games at the beginning of the third. He was just able to take his tennis to another level in those.
"He showed why he's a great champion. Staying there mentally tough and finishing the match the way he did."
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