SAN FRANCISCO -- A year ago, Boston Celtics owners Wyc Grousbeck and Steve Pagliuca executed an audacious move: They made their successful coach a rookie team president and replaced him with a rookie coach.

Had anyone on the dais the day the move to elevate Brad Stevens was formalized -- June 2, 2021 -- been told that exactly 365 days later the Celtics would win Game 1 of the 2022 NBA Finals 120-108 over the Golden State Warriors, they would've found it hard to believe. That included retiring team president Danny Ainge, who built the bones of a team now three wins away from a championship.

Stevens, the Celtics' former coach turned executive, and his maneuvers since accepting the shocking promotion have been both sublime and sensational.

There are quite a few reasons the Celtics have assembled a five-month rally that has them stalking their first title in 14 years, but many of Stevens' moves over the past year have provided instant and overwhelming returns.

• He hired Ime Udoka as his replacement, betting on the longtime assistant's history of learning under San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich followed by further seasoning as an assistant coach in Philadelphia and Brooklyn. Udoka's blend of tough love combined with his ability to build up the team's resilience has been exactly what this group of younger players needed. More to the point, Udoka reached the team in a way that Stevens hadn't, and it has unlocked the Celtics' potential.

Udoka taking over for Stevens wasn't exactly Bill Russell stepping in to replace Red Auerbach, with neither having equity in their jobs. Stevens' hiring his successor was a gamble.

"It was a different situation that a lot of people may not think is appealing, but I think it's only a benefit to have a guy that's coached for seven, eight years in the building with the same guys down the hall," Udoka said about how things have fallen into place.

"We talk about every situation [Stevens has] been through and kind of lend his support as far as that. But also step back and let me do my thing. In a unique situation, it's helped out this year for sure."

• Stevens traded guard Kemba Walker for center Al Horford. This was the first move that established how things were going to be different in Boston. The Celtics admitted that signing Walker to a four-year max contract in 2019 was a mistake and letting Horford walk to the Philadelphia 76ers in that offseason hurt the team.

Stevens sent out a first-round pick, No. 16 last year, to do the deal. This wouldn't have been a typical Ainge move, as he preferred to hoard picks to use either on developmental players or as bait to chase a star. It wasn't that Ainge's process was flawed; the entire core of the team is players he drafted who have paid off. But at this point, Horford was a 35-year-old role player yet Stevens made getting him a priority -- all a definite departure from the team's typical priorities.

The move has proved to be a major plus, both during the season and in the playoffs. Horford has played the hero role numerous times in this postseason, including his 26-point performance on Thursday.

• Stevens signed center Robert Williams III to a four-year, $48 million extension (some bonuses can make it worth up to $54 million). The transaction was seen as a bit of a stretch at the time, as Williams had been plagued by injuries and shown a limited game over the first three years of his career.

Within weeks, Williams earned the team's faith, becoming one of the league's defensive difference-makers, earning a spot on the All-Defensive Team. He has fought through injury this postseason and also played a big role in the Game 1 victory, blocking four shots and being a lob threat around the rim.

• At his first trade deadline in February, Stevens executed an aggressive move by trading a first-round draft pick and a future pick swap with the Spurs for Derrick White. As with Horford, Stevens went against the grain that Ainge had established by investing future draft assets in a role player.

But White, who was signed to a reasonable long-term deal worth $17 million per year and was known for being versatile on offense and a quality defender, has proved to be an ideal fit. Combined with the choice to trade away Dennis Schroder -- an offseason signing that didn't work out for Stevens but a misstep he quickly dealt with -- the move freed up Marcus Smart to be the Celtics' primary point guard while providing a perfect combo guard off the bench.

"This is about adding guys that you think and can see playing in a seven-game knockdown, drag-out playoff series," Stevens said after acquiring White. "And you know they can be on the floor and play a role in helping you win."

White has been a vital contributor over the past two rounds and had a brilliant Finals debut, scoring 21 points and making five 3-pointers.

Add it all together and it's a masterpiece in the first year of work for the Celtics under their rookie president and rookie coach. Stevens finished a distant sixth in the Executive of the Year voting, well back of winner Zach Kleiman of the Memphis Grizzlies. But that's an imperfect award in which the true work is often not seen in a single-season cycle; it often can turn into an 18-month award, which was the case for Kleiman.

The honor is irrelevant at this point; the ultimate hardware is close. And Stevens' touch has made it possible.

And fast.

The Baltimore Orioles have promoted Eve Rosenbaum to assistant general manager of baseball operations, the team announced Friday.

Rosenbaum most recently served as the team's director of baseball development, a role she has held since 2019. She'll advise GM Mike Elias and assistant GM Sig Mejdal.

Rosenbaum spent five seasons with the Houston Astros after playing softball for and graduating from Harvard.

Rosenbaum will help oversee roster construction, transactions, financial planning and major league operations and administration.

Assistant general manager is the second-highest position in the baseball operations department.

Miami Marlins GM Kim Ng is the only woman who is a top executive in baseball.

TORONTO -- The struggling Minnesota Twins have arrived in Toronto without regular right fielder Max Kepler and relief pitchers Emilio Pagán, Caleb Thielbar and Trevor Megill; all of them are on the restricted list to comply with the Canadian government's COVID-19 vaccine mandate.

The four players will miss the three-game series against the Blue Jays. The Twins were waiting to announce replacements until closer to game time on Friday night. Canada requires anyone traveling to the country to have received two doses of a COVID-19 vaccine, the second one at least 14 days before entry.

Pagán discussed his decision not to get a shot with reporters before the Twins departed for Toronto.

"I know that there are going to be people that are very angry for this opinion and the stance, but that's fine," Pagán said. "I feel like I had a choice to make, and they have also a choice if they're going to be mad at me or not."

Pagán was the losing pitcher on Thursday afternoon in Detroit after allowing a two-run homer to Daz Cameron in the eighth inning of a 3-2 defeat. He's one of the late-inning relievers for the AL Central-leading Twins, who have lost seven of their past 10 games, all to division bottom-dwellers Detroit and Kansas City.

"I've gone to every guy in this locker room and explained where I was, and how I came up with my decision, and apologized because I do know it's hurting the team," 31-year-old Pagán said. "I do not believe this is a baseball decision. This is the Canadian government. It's not even an MLB rule."

Kepler, who was born in Germany and is in his seventh full season in the majors, currently has career bests in batting average (.253) and on-base percentage (.357) and is tied for second on the team with six homers.

Thielbar, the most-used left-hander in the bullpen, has a 5.59 ERA with 23 strikeouts in 19 1/3 innings. Megill, a righty in his first season with the Twins, has a 1.04 ERA with 12 strikeouts in 8 2/3 innings.

The Twins entered June with a particularly depleted roster, with a long injured list that includes starting pitcher Sonny Gray and rookie shortstop Royce Lewis. A handful of players are out with COVID-19, including shortstop Carlos Correa and starting pitcher Joe Ryan.

Pagán is 1-2 with seven saves and a 3.00 ERA in 18 games this season. He arrived in a trade with San Diego that sent relief pitcher Taylor Rogers to the Padres. Starting pitcher Chris Paddack, who also came to Minnesota in the deal, is done for the year to recover from Tommy John elbow surgery.

Players not allowed to travel into Canada to face the Blue Jays in Toronto because of their vaccination status will not be paid for those games missed. The agreement with the MLB Players Association covering unvaccinated players and travel to Canada expires at the end of the 2022 season.

For all the teams running into this issue for road games in Toronto, a bigger problem waits in October if the Blue Jays make the playoffs. If their opponent were to be the Twins, Pagán said he wouldn't rule out getting vaccinated then.

"Yeah, of course, I've thought about it. I considered doing something to be able to go this time around," he said. "It's not like I'm anti-medicine. I just felt like I made a decision that was best for me at this time. Things can change. Studies change. I don't want to get into the science of it. I'm not a scientist. I'm not 100% against it, but I'm going to make a decision that I'm comfortable with, and right now when I consider it, I get anxious."

Joe Girardi managed a Philadelphia Phillies team with the reigning National League MVP, five 2021 All-Stars, a payroll above the luxury tax and expectations of ending the NL's longest playoff drought.

But buried deep in the NL East standings and with a sagging bullpen, defensive deficiencies and slumbering starts from some of their high-priced veterans, Girardi paid the price for Philadelphia's poor start. He was fired Friday, becoming the first major league manager to lose his job this season after failing to turn a team with a record payroll into a playoff contender.

The move was made with the Phillies at 22-29, having lost seven of their past nine games and sitting in third place in the National League East, 12 games behind the New York Mets and 5½ games out of the second NL wild-card spot.

"I think we can make the playoffs. I think we're in a position where we can battle back to do that. I do believe that," president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski said.

After the Phillies' announcement, Girardi made his regular appearance on Sirius XM's MLB Network Radio, saying, "We underperformed and that falls on me. This is what happens." Girardi noted struggles in the bullpen and some slow offensive starts among the "number of reasons we didn't win."

"I think you can overcome, sometimes, one thing, maybe even two, but sometimes when it's more than that, I think it's somewhat difficult," Girardi said. "... I just pray that they, you know, get better and they get to the playoffs."

Girardi, 57, had served as Phillies manager for the past three seasons, going 132-141 as Philadelphia continues to seek its first playoff appearance since 2011. His first year with Philadelphia was the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. The Phillies went 82-80 last year, eight games out of a wild-card bid.

In 14 seasons as a major league manager for the Marlins, Yankees and Phillies, Girardi is 1,120-935, winning a World Series with New York in 2009.

Also dismissed Friday was coaching assistant Bobby Meacham, who had joined the team in 2020 along with Girardi.

Bench coach Rob Thomson will serve as the team's interim manager for the rest of the season, while quality assurance coach Mike Calitri was promoted to bench coach.

The Phillies have a $233 million payroll -- the fourth-highest in the majors, per Spotrac -- and boast 2021 NL MVP Bryce Harper and NL Cy Young Award runner-up Zack Wheeler, Aaron Nola, All-Star catcher J.T. Realmuto and free-agent sluggers Nick Castellanos and Kyle Schwarber. Yet Philadelphia hasn't won the World Series since 2008 and has watched fan interest plummet through a decade-plus of mediocre baseball.

"It's not something that can't be fixed and changed," Dombrowski said. "I think we already started some of those changes this winter time when we made some changes within our system, our organization, a lot of changes, but those things don't show up overnight."

Harper has been plagued most of the season with right forearm soreness and was forced to give up right field and play designated hitter. Second baseman Jean Segura is out for up to three months with a fractured right index finger. The Phillies are 12-15 at home and are 4-10 in one-run games.

Thomson has been with the Phillies since the 2018 season. He previously spent 28 years in the Yankees organization, including 10 seasons when Girardi served as manager from 2008 to 2017.

"As a bench coach you're spending a whole lot of time preparing for the other club and probably not so much time in the clubhouse," Thomson said. "I'm going to take the preparer hat off. I'm still going to prepare some, but I'm going to have my confidence in the coaches around me to keep me informed of information. Now I can go out in the clubhouse and really communicate with the players, get to know them, get the feel, know what they like, know what they don't like, know when they're hurt, know when they're not hurt, so that they know that I've got their back and that I support them."

Thomson's first game Friday will be against a Los Angeles Angels team that has lost eight straight games overall and six straight on the road.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Slugger Yordan Álvarez and the Houston Astros agreed to a six-year, $115 million contract extension, sources told ESPN's Jeff Passan. The deal will begin next season and buys out three of Álvarez's free-agent years, sources said.

It represents the biggest contract ever for a player whose primary position is designated hitter and guarantees him $26 million a year for the free-agent seasons, according to sources. The deal is the fifth largest for a player who has yet to reach arbitration, behind Fernando Tatis Jr.'s 14-year, $340 million contract, Wander Franco's 11-year, $182 million extension, Buster Posey's eight-year, $159 million deal and Mike Trout's six-year, $144.5 million agreement.

A unanimous Rookie of the Year Award winner in 2019, Álvarez played in just two games in 2020 as he underwent surgery to repair a torn patellar tendon in his right knee, along with arthroscopic surgery on his left knee.

After a 2021 regular season in which he had career bests of 33 home runs and 104 RBIs, Álvarez, 24, followed that up with a stellar postseason. He was named ALCS MVP after going 12-for-23, including a 4-for-4 performance in the series-clinching Game 6 that sent the Astros past the Boston Red Sox and into the World Series.

This past offseason, Álvarez's contract was renewed by Houston, raising his salary from $609,000 to $764,600. The deal was negotiated by Dan Lozano of MVP Sports Group.

Álvarez, who serves as Houston's designated hitter and plays left field, enters Friday tied for third in the majors with 14 homers and has driven in 31 runs.

We speak to an Olympic distance runner turned triathlete to hear more about juggling three sports in one

Rio Olympian Beth Potter committed to triathlon with a move to Leeds in 2017, but she raced back into athletics’ consciousness when she ran what was, at the time, the fastest women’s 5km in history (14:41) at Barrowford in April last year. 

Although her performance wasn’t ratified as an official world record, it served as a reminder that class is permanent, even when her participation – in athletics at least – was temporary.

An experienced and talented runner with PBs of 15:28.32 (5000m) and 32:03.45 (10,000m), Potter switched to triathlon with the goal of making it on to a global podium. 

“I just felt like it was so unachievable for me to get a global medal on the track in the 5000m or 10,000m,” she says. “It’s just so hard to compete [with the African athletes]. I want a global medal at the end of the day.

“Triathlon is still really hard because all the really good guys are Brits, so I’m working my way up to the top, but I just didn’t see it happening [on the track]. I just didn’t think I was good enough.”

The 30-year-old has created her own unique training set-up in Leeds. Jack Maitland, former head coach at Leeds Triathlon Centre, oversees her programme and, together with two-time Olympic triathlon champion Alistair Brownlee, he also helps out with her cycling. Andy Henderson, who has a talented group of athletes including Olympic 800m runner Alex Bell, looks after her running; Coz Tantrum, former coach to the Brownlee brothers, looks after her swimming; and Dane Mitchell is her gym coach.

The 2019 European triathlon champion made history at Gold Coast 2018 when she became the first Team Scotland athlete to compete across two sports – athletics and triathlon – in the same Games. She will represent Scotland in the triathlon at her third Commonwealth Games in Birmingham this summer. 

 “I know I’m in good shape, but I don’t know how I’ll stack up against the other girls,” she says. “I don’t want to put a mark on it because I don’t want to be disappointed or unrealistic, but I’ll be aiming for the podium.”

Typical training week

As a runner, Potter was coached by Mick Woods from 2012-2018 and averaged 80-85 miles per week while working full-time as a physics teacher. Now, she rarely exceeds 30 miles per week (running). “It’s about getting the quality in,” she says. “I ran the 14:41 5k mainly off swim and bike. My running was just complementing the huge aerobic engine that I had.”

Monday: easy aerobic day; (am) easy technique, aerobic swim with focus on recovery from the weekend; (pm) 1.5-2hr easy bike ride, followed immediately by a run (“a longer aerobic session just to get used to running straight off the bike”). Gym session in the evening: “At this time of year (spring) we’re lifting heavier weights, shorter reps and just introducing more plyometric stuff,” she explains.

Tuesday: (am) 90min VO2 session (pool) e.g., main set 1500m-2km worth of top end work, reps around 100-200m range, no more than 400m; easy spin (75-90min) in the middle of the day either on the turbo or outside; (evening) track session – only hard run session of the week currently – with a group based at Leeds Beckett University: “We do either 8km worth of effort on the track or we split it up with a bit of tempo, bit of track, bit of tempo, bit of track.”

Wednesday: aerobic day – long aerobic miles; (am) 5.5-6km swim (pool in winter, open water in summer); break, then 3-3.5hr of steady riding .

Thursday: key session day; (am) swim 1.5hr: “It’s a threshold day, so it’s a big block of thresholds in the pool broken into longer reps 300m/400m range off short recovery then straight out for an easy run 45-60min.”; (pm) VO2 session on the bike with something like 24min worth of effort and mixture of reps.

Friday: easy swim: “We call it ‘toys Friday’, we get all the toys out in the pool, a lot of upper body strength stuff, parachute, sponges, paddles and we have a 300m block broken into 50ms and 25ms for some really fast stuff.”; gym session and chill out rest of the day.

Saturday: (am) group ride with the Leeds cyclists, around 45min of effort within the ride but the whole ride is quite fast: “We brought it in at the start of the year and planned to do it for 2-3 months, but we’ve ended up keeping it in. It’s really helped with my riding this year. I’ve learned a lot … little habits that I’ve picked up that are good habits.”; (pm) 45min easy run.

Sunday: easy aerobic day like a Wednesday; (am) 2.5-3hr riding; (pm) 60min running.

Favourite session

“I still like track! I really enjoy my Saturday group ride with the cyclists, too, it’s a good atmosphere and a good community …. I like anything that’s either VO2 or threshold across all three, I enjoy that aspect of it.”

Least favourite session

“The only thing I struggle with is doing my Sunday run. All the runners go in the morning and I’m often on my own in the afternoon. I’m really tired on a Sunday afternoon and the thought of it, even though it’s just an hour, I just find it hard at the end of the week to drag myself out.”

As a young athlete, Potter – recently announced as a UK ambassador for Garmin – excelled in swimming and running. Given her starting point of relative inexperience, her greatest gains in triathlon, so far at least, have come on the bike where she opts for the support of Garmin’s Edge 1030 Plus model.

“I really like that you can download routes,” she says. “It was so useful to have satellite navigation on group rides over the winter so that when the cyclists split, I knew where the route was going.

“I often repeat the same sessions, too, so I’ve got a spreadsheet now and we like to compare sessions week on week, track it basically. I think that throughout the winter I’ve become stronger, and the Garmin data has proved that.” 

For runners considering a move to triathlon, Potter’s advice includes phasing it in gradually and choosing quality over quantity. “It’s also about enjoyment,” she adds. “Join a club, train with people that are better than you, and don’t get hung up on the times you used to run as a runner.”

Top clubs clash at Premiership matches in Kingston upon Thames and Eton in round two of the National Athletics League

The top track and field clubs in the country will be vying for points in the second round of National Athletics League matches on Saturday (June 4).

In Kingston upon Thames, champions Thames Valley Harriers will be looking to stay on top following their Premiership win in Cardiff last month. Among the opposition will be Blackheath & Bromley, who scored victory in their opener in Manchester.

Meanwhile, in the other Premiership match at Eton, which will be live-streamed on Vinco, Shaftesbury Barnet Harriers will be looking for a win after narrowly losing out in Manchester last time.

As usual, Thames Valley are putting out a strong team, which will include shot-putter Amelia Strickler, who competed for Britain at the World Indoors this year.

In the 400m hurdles, their Jess Tappin is ably standing in for usual high-scorer Nicole Kendall. The TVH athlete will be hoping for maximum points after her recent big PB of 55.89.

Multiple GB 4x400m relay medallist Zoey Clark will be in action for the club over 100m and 200m. Triple jumper Jude Bright-Davies will be looking to capitalise on his recent breakthrough to 16m by picking up top points for the champions.

Pippa Wingate will be hoping to get them off to a good start at the meeting in the women’s hammer, but Newham & Essex Beagles have Katie Head and Birchfield have Jessica Mayho, both of who are capable of throwing over the national league record of 67.94m.

Talking of records, TVH team manager Manuel da Silva believes the men’s 4x400m mark of 3:06.94 could be under threat from their quartet of Jason Hoyle, Luke Lennon-Ford, Muhammad Kounta and Victor-Ricardo Dos Santos Soares.

Birchfield Harriers will be chasing high scores in the throws thanks in particular to 73m hammer thrower Craig Murch and UK javelin No.2 Emma Hamplett.

The 110m hurdles will be strong with Harrow’s Miguel Perera and Newham & Essex Beagles’ Alex Al Ameen, who have both run under 13.9 this season, lining up.

At Eton, Shaftesbury Barnet hope to be off the mark on the track with a win as Hayley McLean lines up in the 400m hurdles after her recent PB of 55.48. Swansea’s Caryl Granville will hope to run her close.

Jamal Rhoden-Stevens is another potential one-lap winner for Shaftesbury, the 45-second runner going over the flat 400m.

In the shot, Swansea’s Patrick Swan will be out to replicate his Cardiff NAL win over Woodford Green with Essex Ladies’ Youcef Zatat, who has since bounced back to top form in Loughborough.

The javelin will have 75m thrower Joe Dunderdale of City of Sheffield facing Daniel Bainbridge of Shaftesbury Barnet, who ran him close with his 74m PB recently.

Shaftesbury will also be seeking big points from Edson Gomes in the 110m hurdles and Jade Ive in the pole vault.

In the Championship match in Bedford, Crawley AC will be seeking their second victory of the season and they include two of their individual winners from the last round in Matthew Overall, who will again run the 400m, and Mia O’Hara, who will contest the 100m and 200m. Tokyo Paralympian Lydia Church will go in the shot for Peterborough & Nene Valley.

At the other Championship match at Manchester Regional Arena, Tonbridge AC will be relying on their star decathletes. Following his England title win and Commonwealth qualifier last weekend, Harry Kendall will figure in the shot, discus and hammer. Lewis Church, who also has the mark for Birmingham, is lined up for the 110m hurdles, high jump, pole vault, discus and javelin.

Liverpool Harriers, meanwhile, will be hoping to see Emily Dibble over 50m again in the javelin. In the sprints, European junior 200m bronze medallist Success Eduan will represent Sale in the 100m and 2019 European U23 200m champion Shemar Boldizsar goes for E&H in the 100m and 200m.

At Portsmouth in the National 1 division, the hosts will have shot putter Serena Vincent, who is ranked fifth in the UK at the moment, as Belgrave seek to emulate their win from round one.

French Open director Amelie Mauresmo apologised for saying women's matches were less appealing than men's and said she had been quoted "out of context".

Her comment that men's matches had "more attraction and appeal" upset women's world number one Iga Swiatek.

"I want to say sorry to the players that really felt bad about what I said," Frenchwoman Mauresmo, 42, said.

"The comments I made were taken out of context," the two-time Grand Slam champion told the Tennis Channel.

"The people who know me, who've known me on and off the court, throughout my career, throughout everything that I've done, know I'm a big fighter for equal rights and women's tennis, women in general."

Poland's Swiatek, who will play American Coco Gauff in Saturday's French Open final, has played all of her six matches in the daytime.

The only night session to feature a women's match was last Thursday, when France's Alize Cornet beat Latvian 13th seed Jelena Ostapenko in three sets.

Former Wimbledon and Australian Open champion Mauresmo, in her first year as tournament director at the clay-court Grand Slam, said it was "more difficult" to put women's matches on late with the evening session only including one match.

Mauresmo said she was looking to change the format of the sessions.

"I didn't decide to have this one match," she added. "Next year to be more fair to the women's players it would be good to maybe have the possibility to put two matches or maybe a women's match plus a doubles match.

"Concerning the scheduling, specifically for the night matches, my say was that because we have one match only, it's really tougher to schedule a woman's match because we have to take into consideration the length. It's the fair thing to do for the ticketholders.

"We will try to find a better solution to be fair to everyone. We tried to modernise the event, move forward and there are some adjustments to be made."

Rafael Nadal will aim to reach a 14th French Open final on his 36th birthday on Friday - although it remains to be seen whether it could be his last.

But the Spaniard is yet to find a "solution" to his chronic foot injury.

"The last three months and a half, for me, the only thing that I can say is they haven't been easy," Nadal said.

"If we are not able to find an improvement or a small solution, then it's becoming super difficult for me. So that's it," added the world number five, whose encounter with Zverev is scheduled to start at 13:45 BST.

"It's not the moment to talk about [what happens after the French Open]. We are going to talk about that when my tournament finishes."

Nadal overcame defending champion and world number one Novak Djokovic in a thrilling four-set and four-hour encounter in Tuesday's night session.

His 110th win at Roland Garros leaves him two victories away from moving another title clear of 20-time major winners Djokovic and Roger Federer.

Despite winning the Australian Open in January after returning from the foot problem that he feared may end his career, it is clear the injury is still causing issues.

"I am just enjoying every day that I have the chance to be here, and without thinking much about what can happen in the future," Nadal said.

"Of course I'm going to keep fighting to find a solution, but for the moment, we haven't.

"I don't know what's going to happen after here."

Zverev eyes another shot at maiden Grand Slam

Nadal has won six of his nine matches against Zverev - and four of their previous five meetings on clay.

The 25-year-old German's wait for a maiden Grand Slam title continues but he did record his first victory over a top-10 opponent at a major with an impressive four-set win over talented Spanish teenager Carlos Alcaraz in the quarter-finals.

That display secured a second successive French Open semi-final for the 2020 US Open finalist - and victory against Nadal would set up his best chance yet of claiming a maiden Slam, against either Norwegian eighth seed Casper Ruud or Croatia's Marin Cilic.

"I'm not 20 or 21 years old anymore. I'm 25. I am at the stage where I want to win, I'm at the stage where I'm supposed to win," Zverev said.

"Yes, I have not beaten [Djokovic or Nadal] in majors, but I feel like I was very close," he added.

"I feel like I have had very difficult and tough matches against them. But there is a big difference between having a tough match and beating them. Still a major difference."

Ruud chases debut final against experienced Cilic

World number 23 Cilic, edged a captivating four-hour match against Russian seventh seed Andrey Rublev in a fifth-set tie-break to book his place in the final four at Roland Garros for the first time.

With that achievement, the experienced 33-year-old became the fifth active men's player, after current world number one Djokovic and former top-ranked players Nadal, Federer and Andy Murray, to reach the semi-finals of all four Grand Slams.

The 2014 US Open champion, who also reached finals at Wimbledon in 2017 and the Australian Open in 2018, meets a first-time major semi-finalist in Ruud - the first male Norwegian player to reach the last four at a Grand Slam.

Having ended unseeded 19-year-old Holger Rune's run in the previous round, Ruud has recorded the most ATP clay-court wins since the start of 2020 with an impressive 65.

"These are the matches that you dream about playing, and hopefully of course even the final if it's possible," said Ruud.

"I have to be really focused and bring my A-game in the semi-final. Marin has played great all week, and it's going to be another tough match."

Their semi-final will follow the Nadal-Zverev match on Court Philippe Chatrier.

American teenager Coco Gauff says sports stars should use their platform to drive social change, calling for peace and an end to gun crime after reaching the French Open final.

"It felt right in the moment. Hopefully it gets into the heads of people in office to change things," said Gauff.

Last week, 19 children and two teachers were killed by a gunman in Texas.

On Thursday, a gunman killed three employees and a patient at an Oklahoma hospital.

At the end of her on-court interview following her semi-final victory, Gauff walked to the camera to leave a message, as is traditional at the tournament, and wrote 'Peace - end gun violence' on the lens.

"I really didn't know what I was going to write even [in the] moments walking to the camera. It just felt right in that moment to write that," said world number 23 Gauff.

"I woke up this morning, you know, and I saw there was another shooting, and I think it's just crazy."

Gauff says she feel comfortable speaking out for social change and named a list of athletes - LeBron James, Serena Williams, Billie Jean King, Naomi Osaka and Colin Kaepernick - as her role models for using their platforms.

"I feel like a lot of times we're put in a box that people always say, 'sports and politics should stay separate'," said Gauff.

"I say yes, but also at the same time I'm a human first before I'm a tennis player.

"Of course I'm going to care about these issues and speak out about these issues.

"If anything, sports gives you the platform to maybe make that message reach more people."

Gauff is from Florida and says she remembers having friends at the scene of a shooting at a high school campus in Parkland, where 17 people died in 2018.

"I think that this is a problem in other parts of the world, but especially in America it's a problem that's, frankly, been happening over some years but obviously now it's getting more attention," said Gauff.

"For me, it's important, just as a person in the world, regardless of being a tennis player or not.

"It was just especially important just being in Europe and being where I know people globally around the world are for sure watching."

By beating Italy's Martina Trevisan in the semi-finals on Thursday, Gauff became the youngest finalist at Roland Garros since Kim Clijsters in 2001.

She will play Poland's world number one Iga Swiatek in Saturday's final.

Swiatek, 21, is the hot favourite having won her past 34 matches and past five tournaments.

"I'm just going to play free and play my best tennis. I think in a Grand Slam final anything can happen," said Gauff.

"She's not going to give you much opportunities. Watching her play, I think she does a great job of changing direction and hitting angles off the court, and hitting winners - she's always hitting winners."