French Open: Casper Ruud beats Marin Cilic to set up Roland Garros title clash with Rafael Nadal

Marin Cilic started aggressively and powered through the opening set, putting his Norwegian opponent on the backfoot. After spending most of the first set on the defensive, Casper Rudd mounted a methodical counterattack in the second set. The Norwegian used his powerful groundstrokes to gain traction and got an advantage by striking corners with heavy spin. He hit several forehand winners and went big on the serves to pull a reversal from 0/40 by winning five consecutive points.

Protester ties herself to the net to interrupt the French Open semi-final.

Casper Rudd built good momentum and was leading the third set 4-1 when a protestor interrupted the game. An environmental activist of French descent entered the court and tied herself to the edge of the net while wearing a t-shirt that said, 'we have 1028 days left.

Bothe, the players returned to the field after 15 minutes of delay. Casper Rudd closed out the match 3-6, 6-4, 6-2, 6-2 after almost three hours of play. The Norwegian struck 41 winners to 21 unfocused errors.

Casper Rudd will face the 21-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal for the first time in the Roland Garros final on June 5. The Spaniard aims to win his 14th French Open title and a record-breaking 22nd Grand Slam title.

In a post-match interview, Casper Rudd said, "It was a great match from my side. I didn't start the greatest, but Marin also played well in the first set. I was too defensive, and then I could break him in the second set, which got me going again. From that break, I played some of my best tennis this year. I am serving well and playing aggressively, so I am super happy with my performance today.

After the win, Casper Rudd advanced to the French Open final, becoming the first Norwegian to reach the final at a Grand Slam event. The 23-year-old also expressed that he thinks the match will be fun to play as Rafael Nadal will be playing with a student from his academy in Mallorca.