Spoiler Alert

They are the two men standing in the way of the most eagerly awaited French Open men’s final since John McEnroe faced Ivan Lendl in 1984.

David Nalbandian of Argentina and Ivan Ljubicic of Croatia.

So, just how do you say the word “spoiler” in one of the several languages Ljubicic speaks, or in Nalbandian’s native tongue, Spanish?

It may be of use because a French Open final between top-seeded Roger Federer of Switzerland and No. 2 and defending champion Rafael Nadal of Spain -- highly desired by those tennis fans not living in Croatia or Argentina -- is hardly a sure thing.

On Friday, the men’s semifinals will feature Nadal against No. 4 Ljubicic and Federer versus No. 3 Nalbandian, the first time since 1985 that the top four seeded players reached the semifinals in Paris.

“Nobody can intimidate me,” Ljubicic said Wednesday after defeating Julien Benneteau of France, 6-2, 6-2, 6-3, in the quarterfinals.

And last year’s Davis Cup hero, as American fans may remember, is not exactly fearing Nadal’s clay-court streak, which hit 58 consecutive victories after Novak Djokovic of Serbia retired in the third set of their quarterfinal because of back problems.

“I’m not impressed with that streak,” Ljubicic said. “I mean, it’s fantastic results. But he was close to losing matches so many times that, as I said before, it has to happen one day. And I do believe I can beat him....

“That streak has to finish one day. I hope that’s going to be on Friday. He cannot win forever and everybody knows that.”

Nadal’s closest call in recent times came against Federer in the Italian Open final in Rome last month, in which he saved two match points. The sensational match whetted the taste buds of hard-core and casual tennis fans, serving as the appetizer to the main course at Roland Garros.

But three-time French Open champion Mats Wilander, in Paris working as a television commentator for Eurosport, thinks big-serving Ljubicic has a “great chance” against Nadal. Nadal and Ljubicic have played three times, all on hard courts last year, and Nadal holds a 2-1 edge. One win featured a major collapse by Ljubicic, who let a two-set lead slip away in Madrid.

“We’re going to have two great matches, for sure, or intriguing matches,” Wilander said. “We’re going to see the Nadal that we’ll maybe see in three years. We’re going to see him now, how he’s going to handle that other style when all the pressure is on him. It’s a different type of pressure.”

Wilander offered a different perspective on whether the sport is in desperate need of a Federer-Nadal final.

“I guess the sport needs it in terms of other eyes, eyes looking in on the tennis world, yes,” he said. “But I don’t think it makes any difference for us who live the life. I would love to see Federer-Nadal because I think they’re great for each other.”

Wilander said the rivalry between Bjorn Borg and McEnroe survived because Jimmy Connors was thrown into the mix.

“Federer is No. 1 and Nadal never loses to Federer, that’s a great story but it’s not enough,” he said. “We need the other guys to step up. What we need now is Ljubicic and Nalbandian to step up and win a major each. Once they win a major each and they’re still the top four, that’s going to create a buzz that tennis had in the ‘80s, I believe. Which is a different buzz.

“But the buzz in the ‘80s, me, [Stefan] Edberg, [Boris] Becker, McEnroe, Lendl and Connors, we all had more than four majors each. Every time there was a major we all thought we were going to win.”

As for the other semifinal, Wilander interviewed Nalbandian, who seemed to shrug off the pressure, considering he almost beat Federer in the semifinals on clay in Rome last month, losing, 7-6, in the third set.

And last year, he defeated Federer in the final of the ATP Masters Cup in Shanghai, a major psychological breakthrough on a significant stage. He holds a 6-5 career edge against Federer and won their only other meeting on clay, though it was in 2002.

Even the great clay-court man himself, Nadal, wasn’t quite sure what to think about Federer versus Nalbandian.

Federer is the favorite, Nadal said, “but for sure, Nalbandian can beat him, no?”

No? Well, yes, and that’s the crux of the issue for those eager for a Federer-Nadal final.

*

At a glance

Wednesday at the French Open:

Men’s quarterfinals: No. 2 Rafael Nadal def. Novak Djokovic, who retired with a back injury after losing the first two sets; No. 4 Ivan Ljubicic def. Julien Benneteau.

* Today’s women’s semifinals: No. 2 Kim Clijsters vs. No. 5 Justine Henin-Hardenne, and No. 8 Svetlana Kuznetsova vs. No. 16 Nicole Vaidisova.