The two top men's tennis players in the world were in action Friday in the semifinals of the 2020 French Open, and they set the stage for arguably the most highly anticipated final of the year.

World No. 2 Rafael Nadal started the day with a straight-set victory over the pesky Diego Schwartzman to advance to his 13th career French Open final, while No. 1 Novak Djokovic overcame a tough challenge from the fifth-seeded Stefanos Tsitsipas to clinch his spot in the final.

Sunday will mark the third time Nadal and Djokovic have met in the French Open final, with Nadal coming out on top in each of the previous two matches.

Here is a rundown of the scores from Friday's action at Roland Garros as well as a recap of the men's semifinals.

Men's Singles Semifinal Results

(2) Rafael Nadal d. (12) Diego Schwartzman, 6-3, 6-3, 7-6 (0)

(1) Novak Djokovic d. (5) Stefanos Tsitsipas, 6-3, 6-2, 5-7, 4-6, 6-1

Women's Doubles Semifinal Results

(2) Kristina Mladenovic and Timea Babos d. (4) Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova, 6-2, 4-6, 7-5

(14) Alexa Guarachi and Desirae Krawczyk d. Iga Swiatek and Nicole Melichar, 7-6 (5), 1-6, 6-4

Friday Recap

Nadal is always the odds-on favorite at Roland Garros, and that was especially true entering his match against Schwartzman.

Few expected Schwartzman to make it as far as the semifinals, but he pulled off a major upset against third-seeded Dominic Thiem in the quarterfinals. A Nadal vs. Thiem semi likely would have been a bit more competitive, as Thiem is coming off his first career Grand Slam title at the U.S. Open and faced Nadal in the French Open final each of the past two years.

Instead, Rafa took the play to Schwartzman and left no doubt that he was the better player on clay:

Nadal actually lost to Schwartzman on clay in their previous meeting in Rome this year, marking the Argentine's first win in 10 tries against Rafa.

Schwartzman wasn't much of a factor until the final set Friday, though, and Nadal expressed his belief that the turnaround was because he was better prepared for the tournament:

Nadal has won each of his six matches in straight sets at this year's French Open, adding to his already remarkable record at Roland Garros:

Rafa also has just two career losses in the French Open and also lost one match because of a walkover. In French Open semifinals and finals, Nadal is undefeated.

Commentator Rennae Stubbs marveled at Nadal's continued dominance Friday:

Djokovic is one of the two players to beat Nadal at the French Open, doing so in the 2015 quarterfinals. The following year, Nadal exited the tournament because of injury, and the Djoker won his first and only French Open title.

The Serb has won every other Grand Slam title at least three times, but in order to become a multitime French Open winner, he must go through Nadal in Sunday's final.

Taking down Nadal in a Paris final is difficult under any circumstance since it has never been done before, but Djokovic figures to have an even more difficult time after Tsitsipas pushed him to five sets in the semis.

Djokovic had Tsitsipas down and out in the third set, as he won the first two sets easily and then had match point in the third. Tsitsipas managed to win the point and then break Djokovic, hold serve and then break Djoker again to force a fourth set, however.

A seemingly refreshed Tsitsipas turned up his level of play in the fourth set and managed to force a decisive fifth set against all odds:

Tsitsipas had all the momentum on his side at that point, but given how often Djokovic had been in similar situations during his career, he was truly the one with the advantage.

Djokovic broke Tsitsipas twice early in the fifth set to take control and never relinquished control.

Tsitsipas appeared tired in the fifth set, while Djokovic was spry, but maintaining that energy when he faces Nadal won't be easy.

Djokovic is already one of the best of all time, but if he can find a way to beat Nadal coming off a five-setter, then it will be his strongest claim yet to being the greatest player in the history of tennis.