Is this a lull that Thiem needs to take advantage of?

Nadal double faults to give his opponent an easy point. The Austrian can't capitalise though with four forehand errors. That's a little slack.

As if to add insult to injury, Rafa jogs to his bag to change racquet. He's fresh as a daisy, Dom. How are you?

Image source, AFP

Despite how tough this match is looking for him, Thiem shows good sportsmanship by accepting a Nadal forehand that was called out had actually clipped the line. He gets a nod of appreciation from Rafa. Well done young man.

Thiem looks in trouble again at 0-30 but Nadal let's his grip on the game slip, in particular when he misses a simple volley with the court at his mercy.

Some advice for Thiem from a Grand Slam winner...

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If Dominic Thiem was playing against anyone else in the world here, I reckon he'd be in front.

Unfortunately for him he's playing the greatest clay court player of all time.

The Spaniard's forehand is fizzing off the court. It looks like it is after picking up speed after it bounces due to the top spin.

Image source, Getty Images

Phil Beck: Wawrinka and Murray earlier was special, but I'm pretty confident that Stan merely won the right to lose against Rafa. He's back.

Dominic Thiem is firing down his first serve to great effect in this match but it is when he misses his first effort that the issue comes.

He has won just 39% of his points behind the second serve.

He must be listening to me. A second serve skips off the line and beats Nadal.

Thiem stays in touch.

Image source, AFP

Half of the Chatrier court is now in shadow as the evening ticks on in Paris.

Thiem is going to have to change this up if the worries about not finishing this match tonight are to be relevant.

He'll need points like this. Over and over hitting heavy forehands before eventually clinching his 12th winner. Sadly for the 23-year-old, despite all of the effort, it is only worth one point. He needs to do that every time.

Nadal holds.

John Poole: Only 11 games in and Thiem looks out of ideas already. Rafa is a juggernaut

Nadal is spinning the ball high to the Thiem single-handed backhand. A tactic that gave Roger Federer nightmares for many a year.

Thiem is trying and trying to wriggle free of Nadal's clutches in this game but eventually, like the predator he is, Nadal has his kill.

Image source, Reuters

Remember Rafa has only ever lost two matches at the French Open. That's the challenge Dominic Thiem is facing.

He is throwing everything he can at the Spaniard but every point is a work out. There are no easy points like against Novak Djokovic in the quarter-final.

The Austrian is proving he is not all power though with another nice volley. Still, he can't finish his man off. Deuce.

Boom. Two break points fought off and then a 125mph ace sees Nadal safely through.

He's not the nine-time champ for nothing.

Image source, AFP

Oooo. Now you don't see this every day. A short ball, sitting up right in the service box and on the Rafa forehand, you'd think it would hit the backboard faster than you can blink.

Not this time as the Spaniard nets.

That has given Dominic Thiem hope. He pummels away at the Nadal defence over and over. Somehow it keeps coming back until Thiem shows skills at the opposite end of the scale to play a delightful drop volley.

Two break points Thiem...

Good stuff Dominic Thiem.

With the frankly terrifying sight of Rafa Nadal hunting another break of serve on 'his' court, a lesser man could have crumbled.

The Austrian holds and is giving a good account of himself.

Image source, AFP

Oh that is good.

Nadal starts the set with a stunning top spin lob to leave Thiem stranded and looking a little silly at the net.

The Spaniard thinks he can get a break right away at the start of this set. I wouldn't bet against it as we go to deuce.

So that's the first set that Dominic Thiem has dropped at Roland Garros this year.

How will he respond? Stan Wawrinka dropped his first set of the tournament in the opening set of his semi-final. Look what happened there...

Three break points for Rafa. Surely he has to take one of these? Yep.

One goes when Rafa miscues a backhand before the pair stare each other out in another bruising baseline rally.

Who will buckle first? Thiem. The sixth seed lamps a forehand long, and Rafa roars.

The nine-time champion draws first blood.

Image source, AFP

Thiem is swinging heftier than a boxer who knows his legs are about to buckle.

The Austrian lands a forehand winner for 40-15 and, although Rafa pegs him back to 40-30 with a jab of his own, hangs on to his serve.

But will that be enough to help cling on in this opening set? Rafa to serve for it...

Doctor Thiem has been giving the Nadal serve a close examination but this time he leaves his stethoscope at home.

He can't get near the Spaniard. Nadal rattles off a hold to love in a matter of seconds.

The Spanish contingent waves their red and yellow national flags in the Chatrier stands. Their amigo is one game away from the opening set...

Beautiful! A peach of a forehand drop-shot from Nadal puts him 30-15 ahead on Thiem's serve, giving him another sniff of a break.

The Austrian takes a deep breath, composes himself and looks back across the net. He knows he has to hold this, otherwise he might as well wave goodbye to the first set.

That's what he does. Thiem moves into the net to pat down a smash, then cracks another forehand winner.

Image source, Reuters

The first goes begging when Thiem hits a backhand wide.

The second? Also disappears quicker than a rat down a drainpipe. Rafa senses Thiem is going to edge to his backhand side on a second serve - so goes to the forehand side.

The off-balance Austrian can't recover...deuce. A backhand winner sets Nadal on the way to another hold.

Each of Rafa's three service games have been nervy, but Thiem only taking one of his five break points is the key stat.