Down to four women, and although the raging favourite for several good reasons is Maria Sharapova, legitimate cases can be mounted for any of the 2012 semi-finalists to raise the trophy on Saturday at Roland Garros.
The routes taken to reach this stage of the tournament have been varied, and notable for the early and then consistent upsets of top seeded players.
The first semi final to be considered has the surprise pairing of 21st seed Sara Errani and 6th seed Samantha Stosur, one of 2 players left who is a reigning Grand Slam singles champion, and the only player who has experienced a women's singles final at this event.
Stosur has won each of the 5 matches against the Italian beginning as far back as the last Olympic Games, but Errani is enjoying a much more successful year than the Australian with 3 titles already. Still in the only clash between the two in 2012 it was Samantha who took home the chocolates, on clay. To rub salt into the wound it was a straight sets win in Sara's back yard - the Rome Premier tournament.
Stosur had the good fortune firstly not to have to play a seeded player in the fourth round, with 12th seed Lisicki and 24th seed Cetkovska bowing out before inflicting any damage. Dominika Cibulkova then provided Stosur with a gift to beat all else by cancelling the visa of world number one Vika Azarenka in the fourth round. Sam was extremely appreciative not to have to fight the odds against Vika and she thanked Cibulkova by dispensing with the Slovakian dream in their quarter final in straight sets, the only mode of victory employed in her 5 matches so far this French Open.
So how come Errani managed to make it to her first Grand Slam singles semi final? Well her wins from round 3 were pretty impressive - Sara knocked out the 13th and 28th seeds in successive rounds, and they just happened to be Ana Ivanovic and Svetlana Kuznetsova, the 2008 and 2009 Roland Garros champions respectively. To seal the deal, Errani conquered top ten player and German number one Angelique Kerber in the quarters.
The path for Errani was cleared somewhat with the removal of obstacles in the form of 18th seed Flavia Pennetta, 8th seed and semi finalist from 2011 Marion Bartoli, and 3rd seed Agnieszka Radwanska.
The manner in which Stosur has played and won her matches has been highly impressive this year, perhaps even greater than when she captured her US Open title. All things being equal, the Australian has too many weapons available on clay for Errani to counter, but before declaring the winner of the semi final, just remember the last time Stosur entered a big match at Roland Garros against an Italian player. Yes - 2010 saw the fighting qualities of Francesca Schiavone overcome Samantha in the final. Sara need look no further than that display to believe she is a real chance to reach the final.
The marquee semi final (on paper at least) consists of the 2 players who fought out a wonderful final at Wimbledon last year, and blessed us with another 3 set battle to remember in Melbourne in this year's Australian Open. Petra Kvitova triumphed at Wimbledon, but it was the Russian who claimed the points away from the grass. Significantly on the clay in the Stuttgart semis in April, Maria once again proved the stronger of the two, and has continued that form through to the Paris version of the surface.
The number 2 and number 4 seeds were drawn to meet here in a semi final, but the opponents they encountered on the way did not always fit expectations.
Petra has defeated players ranked no higher than 61, avoiding the matches she would have pencilled in with 32nd seed Niculescu, 14th seed and last year's finalist Schiavone, and 7th seed and defending champion Li Na. If Federer enjoyed a charmed run to the quarters, then Kvitova's stroll to the semis is heaven sent.
Of course Sharapova has also managed to miss out on potential trouble, not yet having seen anyone on the other side of the net from the top 20. Other women saved Maria from the worry of 16th seed Kirilenko and 5th seed Serena Williams as she marched freely to the second Thursday.
On the basis of clay court form, head to head recent history, and overall experience and success in Grand Slam tournaments, I have to agree with the majority and predict Maria Sharapova to taste the Paris clay on finals day for the first time, in the process regaining the world number one ranking and keeping alive the dream of completing a career Grand Slam.
Sharapova v Stosur is my prediction for the final and if it does come to pass it may be closer than history between the two would suggest.
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