This is the best the Spaniards have done in a major since Carlos Moya won the French in '98 over Alex Corretja and Moya became No. 1.

	Mal's Picks
	Washington Former ATP Tour pro MaliVai Washington is providing ESPN.com with in-depth analysis during the French Open. Washington, a tennis analyst for ESPN, reached the 1996 Wimbledon final.

They had a bunch of players in the top 25 -- more than other country, and it's a small country -- back in the 1990s. They called themselves The Spanish Armada.

A couple of those players have fallen off a little bit. Moya had injuries. Corretja, up until this year, hasn't been having success to his typical standards. You kind of wondered where the Spaniards were. Well, here they are. They just showed up with three of them in the semifinals.

Albert Costa (20), Spain, vs. Alex Corretja (18), Spain
These are two great clay-court players who are really good friends. They are going to need to put their friendship aside for this match.

When they walk onto the court, they are going to have to say this is my enemy -- not my friend. I wonder if a guy like Corretja, who is known as the nicest guy on the tour, can do it. When Moya won their final in '98, he fell to the ground and Corretja jumped the net to hug him. It was hard to tell who was more happy -- Moya for winning the championship or Corretja because his buddy just won the championship. So Corretja might struggle with his emotions out there a little bit. He'll have to put that aside and say, "For the next few hours this isn't my buddy. I'm going to destroy him."

If he takes that position, with the tennis he's playing and the tennis Costa is playing, this will be an incredible matchup. The desire is going to be immense for these two clay-courters who are among the best in the world. There are plenty of guys who go their whole career and never reach a final. Fewer still who win them.

Corretja has a slight edge over Costa, who has never been to the semifinals of a major. Corretja has gone on to the finals of the French Open twice.

This match will be clay-court tennis at it's absolute best.
Pick: Corretja in five

Juan Carlos Ferrero (11), Spain, vs. Marat Safin (2), Russia
Marat Safin feels like he squandered an opportunity this year at the Australian Open. He went out onto the court overconfident and went down in four sets to Thomas Johansson. I think he really regrets losing that. He really wants to redeem himself.

Safin is playing better in majors than anyone else on the tour, reaching that final and the semifinals here. He's confident right now -- he destroyed Sebastien Grosjean in the quarterfinals. Safin is so used to overpowering his opponents, and his game is so oppressive. He can get on top of a player and be repressive.

But he's playing Ferrero, who is hands down the best clay-court player on the tour with the exception of Gustavo Kuerten. The two previous years Ferrero has been to the semis in Paris, and he has lost to eventual champion Kuerten. This year, Kuerten isn't there. This year's French Open is Ferrero's destiny.

He needs to look at this like it is his title. He's not your typical Spanish player staying behind the baseline hitting loopy balls over the net. He's going to stand on top of the baseline, being aggressive and trying to hit winners. For a guy as slight as he is, he's able to generate power from all over the court -- off both his backhand and forehand.

The other semifinal will be the classic clay-court duel between two clay-courters. But Safin vs. Ferrero is going to be a great clay-courter against Safin, a great player, who can play very well on clay.
Pick: Ferrero in five