Austrian seventh seed Dominic Thiem reached the French Open semi-finals for the third successive year with a straight-set win over an injured Alexander Zverev.

Thiem, 24, won 6-4 6-2 6-1 against the German second seed.

Zverev, 21, struggled with a hamstring injury from midway through the second set, needing treatment and heavy strapping before continuing.

But he cut a forlorn figure as Thiem triumphed in one hour and 50 minutes.

Thiem will meet either 12-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic or Italy’s Marco Cecchinato in the last four.

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Zverev injury ruins highly anticipated contest

Zverev and Thiem have long been identified as the two younger players most likely to threaten Rafael Nadal’s dominance on clay.

Zverev is the leading player on the ATP Tour this year, having earned more ranking points and won more matches than anyone else.

Thiem’s preparations for Roland Garros were boosted by winning a tour title in Lyon, moving him clear of Nadal as the leading man on clay – in terms of number of matches won – this year.

So it was a quarter-final greeted with much intrigue and excitement as both men looked to move a step closer to a potential first Grand Slam title.

Unfortunately the match-up was ruined as a contest when Zverev, playing his first Grand Slam quarter-final, pulled his left hamstring midway through the second set.

Zverev had spent almost two and a half hours more on court than Thiem in his run to the last eight, having needed five sets to come through each of his previous three matches.

That appeared to have an effect on the German as he made a slow start in the first and then pulled up in the second.

He decided to carry on, but looked nothing like the player who had been tipped by some to win Roland Garros.

He won just four points as Thiem raced 4-0 ahead, fighting back briefly by earning a break point at 4-1, but losing serve again in the next game as Thiem advanced with a trademark backhand winner.

Time for Thiem to step up

Thiem lost in the Roland Garros semi-finals to Novak Djokovic in 2016 and Nadal last year, acknowledging before his match against Zverev it is “time to make a great step” from being labelled as a future champion to actually winning a major title.

Unlike Zverev, he has never won a Masters title but is hoping to go one further by emulating compatriot Thomas Muster to become the second Austrian man to win Roland Garros.

And he showed signs of his pedigree in an impressive first set.

Thiem dominated his service games, dropping only six points on it, while taking the only break point of the opener with a stunning cross-court backhand.

Although Thiem’s one-handed backhand is regarded as his most potent shot, winners were coming from both sides before he clinched the set with an ace out wide.

However, he did not have to be at his best during the next two sets as his good friend Zverev struggled.

“He is one of the fittest guys on tour but even for him it is tough to play three five-setters in a row,” said Thiem.

“I hope we have more matches at this stage of a Grand Slam – or even later – and we are both 100%. It will be nicer for everybody.”

A tough match to watch – analysis

Great Britain Davis Cup captain Leon Smith

Zverev is a popular figure, he’s had an incredible year but it wasn’t really a match. He looked very tired and jaded in the first set and then obviously struggled with his hamstring. It was pretty tough to watch when you see Zverev looking so flat. No doubt there was some mental fatigue as well from playing so many five-set matches.

Thiem won in one hour and 50 minutes and will be fresh in the semi-finals.

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Ten-time French Open champion Rafael Nadal moved into the 2018 quarter-finals with a 6-3 6-2 7-6 (7-4) victory over Germany’s Maximilian Marterer.

Nadal, 32, lost his opening service game and trailed 2-0 in the first set in Paris before recovering well.

He broke Marterer’s serve early in the second set and fought back from 3-1 down in the third for a straight-set win against the unseeded 22-year-old.

The Spaniard will play 11th seed Diego Schwartzman, 25, in the last eight.

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The Argentine recovered from two sets down to beat South African sixth seed Kevin Anderson 1-6 2-6 7-5 7-6 (7-0) 6-2 to move into the second Grand Slam quarter-final of his career – and first at Roland Garros.

Nadal, meanwhile, has reached at least the quarter-finals in 12 of the 14 years he has played in the French Open.

The world number one has won 37 consecutive sets in the tournament, though he needed a tie-break in the third set to secure Monday’s win over world number 70 Marterer.

Nadal, who celebrated his birthday on Sunday, is now third on the all-time list for most match wins at Grand Slams, moving clear of Jimmy Connors with his 234th.

“I don’t feel old, but I am 32, and I have been here since 2003, so it’s a long way, a lot of years,” said Nadal.

“I started very young. That’s a real thing. But, no, I feel happy to be here. I hope to keep doing this for a while.”

Schwartzman delight at ‘David and Goliath’ win

Schwartzman, who is 5ft 7in, said his victory over 6ft 8in Anderson was like “David and Goliath”.

“I read it when I was young in school, and I just try to think that when I see Kevin or the guys who are two metres (tall),” he said.

“When you’re not as strong or you’re not as tall as Anderson, you can still win the match. I think people like me more, as well, for that, because they were supporting me.

“They wanted me to remain in the game and the fact he was twice as tall as me was a reason for me to try and remain. But you can have a very good serve whether you’re tall or small. That didn’t have anything to do with it.”

Nadal, who has won all his five previous meetings with Schwartzman, said of the Argentine: “It’s always good to see him in the quarter-final because he’s a good friend, a good person.

“He’s a worker, and I’m happy to see him having all this success. Hopefully not too much.”

Schwartzman’s compatriot Juan Martin del Potro also moved into the last eight with a 6-4 6-4 6-4 win over American ninth seed John Isner.

Del Potro, seeded fifth, faces either third seed Marin Cilic of Croatia or Italian 18th seed Fabio Fognini in the quarter-finals.

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Serena Williams pulled out of the French Open before her fourth-round match with Maria Sharapova because of an injury that affected her serve.

The 23-time Grand Slam winner recently returned to tennis after giving birth to her first child, but looked in good form in her opening matches.

“I’ve had issues with the right pectoral muscle to the point where I can’t serve,” said the 36-year-old.

“I’ll have a scan. I won’t know about Wimbledon until I get the results.”

Williams said she first felt the problem during her third-round win over German 11th seed Julia Gorges on Saturday.

She played in a doubles match with sister Venus on Sunday, saying she wanted to try to manage the problem before her match with Sharapova.

“I tried lots of taping and support to see how it felt in match circumstances,” Williams said.

“It is hard to play when I can’t physically serve. I’ve never had this injury before, I’ve never felt it in my life and it was so painful.

“I don’t know how to manage it.”

Williams said she will have an MRI scan in Paris on Tuesday and will stay in the French capital at least until the extent of her injury is clear.

Sharapova said she was “looking forward” to playing Williams and “disappointed” the American had to withdraw.

“I wish her a speedy recovery and hope she returns to the tour soon,” she added.

The 31-year-old Russian, a two-time winner at Roland Garros, will play 2016 champion Garbine Muguruza. The Spaniard was 2-0 up in the opening set of her match against Lesia Tsurenko when the Ukrainian retired hurt.

Rivalry was set to be renewed

The possibility of Williams facing Sharapova had been grabbing attention since the draw was made at Roland Garros 10 days ago.

And the meeting of the two former champions, both making comebacks at Roland Garros this year, was set up when Williams beat Gorges shortly after Sharapova beat Czech sixth seed Karolina Pliskova.

Williams has recently returned after giving birth to daughter Olympia in September, while 28th seed Sharapova is back in the draw after being refused a wildcard last year as she returned from a 15-month drugs ban.

The pair have had a frosty relationship since they first met on court in 2003, although Williams said in her pre-match news conference on Saturday that she did not have any “negative feelings” towards the Russian.

There has not been much of a rivalry on court in recent years, Williams having won 19 of their 21 meetings. Both of Sharapova’s wins came in 2004 – including that year’s Wimbledon final.

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Six matches in six days takes its toll – analysis

Tennis correspondent Russell Fuller at Roland Garros

Williams had been in astoundingly good form in the first week, but footage of the final set of Sunday’s doubles – which she and sister Venus lost 6-0 – showed Serena rolling in a number of slow first serves.

The three-time champion chose to play doubles as well as singles because she knew she needed matches under her belt. But six matches in six days – after just four in the previous 16 months – appears to have taken its toll. A pectoral injury is most commonly associated with overuse.

Tuesday’s MRI scan will reveal more, but if there is no serious damage, then Wimbledon may still be very much within Williams’ sights. There are still four weeks to go, and not being able to play a grass-court warm-up event beforehand should not be a concern: only twice in her career has she done so.