Paris - Defending champion Stan Wawrinka held off Albert Ramos Vinolas' late charge to storm into the French Open semi-finals with a 6-2 6-1 7-6(7) victory on Wednesday.
The third-seeded Swiss, who got off to a slow start in opening rounds of the claycourt grand slam, steamrolled through the first two sets and resisted in the third on Court Suzanne Lenglen to set up a meeting with either local favourite Richard Gasquet or world number two Andy Murray of Britain.
Wawrinka used his single-handed backhand to move Ramos-Vinolas left, right and centre and it took the unseeded left-hander more than two sets to adjust.
After breaking back in the third, he forced a tiebreak and even had a set point but Wawrinka saved it and raised his arms in celebration when Ramos Vinolas's forehand sailed long on match point.
Reuters