Mention the word “betting” in the corridors beneath the tennis courts of the world and it brings on a dose of the vapours. One wonders how the sport — knee-deep into reviews about match-fixing and insider-dealing — will react to news that Harry Findlay, the legendary professional gambler, has registered the name Pearl of Manacor at Weatherby’s for his next equine purchase. “The horse that gets that name will have to be a serious aeroplane,” he said.

Findlay is an immense fan of Rafael Nadal, the Spaniard who has taken his levels on red clay through the clouds. Manacor in Majorca is his home town and the 22-year-old is a gem in the sporting ocean. Yesterday, with another performance of crushing audacity to beat Novak Djokovic, the world No 3, in straight sets — he has dropped only 37 games in six matches here this year — Nadal reached his fourth consecutive French Open final and was so focused in his pursuit of it that he did not notice Bjorn Borg, the only man to have won Roland Garros four times in succession, taking his place in the front row to watch the story unfold.

As if by decree, Roger Federer will be standing across the net tomorrow, an occasion bound to be as raw and momentous as their previous 16 matches, ten of which Nadal has won. Federer extricated himself from many holes against Gaël Monfils, the Frenchman who gave his people an extraordinary run for their rediscovered devotion of him. It took the Swiss three hours and five minutes to win 6-2, 5-7, 6-3, 7-5 and it will not have escaped the Spanish camp how hard he was made to work for every point as Monfils, prone to throwing himself across the court with histrionic purpose, competed with immense heart and dignity.

After Jo-Wilfried Tsonga’s dreamy performance at the Australian Open in January, the French have another real star on their hands.

One day, their prince may come. For now, they have to make do with a third successive final between the man who bestrides these courts like a thoroughbred and the classic colt who wins most of the other races but has found the toughest of them all a hurdle too far.

Federer will play his fifteenth grand-slam tournament final tomorrow, once more knowing that he has to take out the best clay-court player of his generation to complete the championship set.

“It’s no joke, I really feel strongly that this is my year to win here,” Federer said. “Rafa hasn’t had any problems whatsoever to reach the final, but it’s important to test yourself over and over again and if I’m going to win the French, what better way to do it than beat Rafa in the final. I look at this as an enjoyable prospect.”

Nadal was too powerful in every way for Djokovic on Court Philippe Chatrier, an arena two-thirds empty at the outset of a grand-slam tournament semi-final — an indictment of how corporate these events have become — and even when it was replete around mid-afternoon, it often fell eerily silent as Nadal went about his business with jaw-dropping brilliance. The defending champion won 6-4, 6-2, 7-6, having led the third set 3-0, whereupon the No 3 player decided that he had better start playing like one or risk real embarrassment.

Nadal moves across the wide-open spaces of centre court with a grace that is both beautiful and alarming. His ability to generate pace from what appear to be defensive positions is quite remarkable and his backhand has developed new levels of potency, whether it be slicing it back to keep a rally going, or driving through a two-hander and finding cross-court angles where none should exist.

“It was tough mentally, because I had the match totally under control, and for some moment, suddenly the match was complicated,” Nadal said. “Given a little bit more calm I was there. Well, if he \ wants to beat me, he has to play two more sets like this. I took a decision then. I had to win the court again, I had to move more inside the lines, because he was more inside than me at that moment.”

Nadal won the first six points of the tie-break, Djokovic dug in to take the next three but a definitive smash brought an end to proceedings and Nadal was rolling in the dirt, covering his new green kit in brown stains. It would take a brave man to say with any certainty that Federer can win three sets at the French against Nadal, because the most he has taken from him in a match here is one. Two would not be enough. Three? That would be superhuman.