French Open Tennis 2013 Women's Semifinal: TV Schedule, Start Time, Live Stream

Thursday is a huge day for the remaining women in the 2013 French Open, as the semifinals of the tournament will narrow the field from four hopeful finalists to the two that actually make the big event.

Maria Sharapova and Victoria Azarenka will get things started off early in a highly anticipated showdown between two longtime rivals that are evenly matched on paper. 

Later, odds-on favorite Serena Williams will look to continue her incredible winning streak against fifth-seeded Sara Errani. Most are expecting the American to advance in straight sets, but anything could happen at Roland Garros.

Let’s take a closer look at each of the two marquee semifinals matchups taking place on Court Philippe Chatrier on June 6, which US Open Tennis highlighted on Twitter:

(2) Maria Sharapova vs. (3) Victoria Azarenka

When: Thursday, June 6 at 9 a.m.

Where: Stade Roland Garros, Paris, France

Watch: ESPN2

Live Stream: ESPN3.com

Tennis fans aren’t going to want to miss a single game of this match between the defending French Open champion Sharapova and reigning Australian Open winner Azarenka.

The Twitter account for Roland Garros shared this detail on the matchup:

Sharapova lost her first set of the tournament on Wednesday, dropping the initial set of her quarterfinal match against former No. 1-ranked Jelena Jankovic before rallying for a 0-6, 6-4, 6-3 victory.

That incredible comeback broke a career-long streak of five-straight losses after being blanked in the opening set.

Credit the 26-year-old’s adjustment to her forehand, which was failing her miserably and landing well off target in the beginning of the match. By the end of the third set, Sharapova was dominating with winner-after-winner coming from the shot, per Roland Garros:

She is now poised to defend her title against Azarenka, who had a bit of an easier path to get here.

Azarenka had to work hard in a tiebreak to win her first set but ultimately swept past Maria Kirilenko in the quarterfinals with a 7-6 (7-3), 6-2 win over the Russian.

The Belarusian utilized her serve to great advantage, committing just two double faults and maintaining a 78 percent first-serve percentage. She’s now in the semifinals at Roland Garros for the first time in her career, as she never advanced past the quarters in her seven previous attempts.

If Azarenka can continue her hot serve and put Sharapova on her heels Thursday, she has a chance to advance even further.

(1) Serena Williams vs. (5) Sara Errani

When: Thursday, June 6 at 11 a.m.

Where: Stade Roland Garros, Paris, France

Watch: NBC

Live Stream: NBCSports.com

Serena Williams is riding the hottest streak of her career into the semifinals of the French Open, her first appearance on this stage in exactly a decade, as Roland Garros points out:

She almost didn’t make it, as she needed to mount a comeback from down 0-2 in the third set of her 6-1, 3-6, 6-3 victory over unseeded Svetlana Kuznetsova in the quarterfinals.

Kuznetsova proved the American to be beatable, breaking her serve four times in the match. No previous opponent in this event had been able to accomplish that, but the 2009 champion ultimately failed due to her inability to hold her own.

Williams broke the Russian’s serve six times and won five straight games in the third set to claim victory—her 29th straight match point-winner that pushed her record on clay to an eye-popping 21-0 in 2013, per Roland Garros:

The 15-time Grand Slam winner is now looking to dismiss Errani and position herself for her second title at Roland Garros—the tournament she has struggled at most over her long and decorated career.

It won’t be easy, as the Italian is at the top of her game and playing some of the best tennis of any competitor in the field.

The No. 5 seed eliminated Agnieszka Radwanska 6-4, 7-6 (8-6) and improved her French Open record to 11-1 in the past two seasons, with the sole loss coming to Sharapova last year in the finals.

Williams certainly has an advantage and holds a 5-0 career record over Errani, recently beating her on the clay surface at Madrid last month. Regardless, it should be an epic match with both women fighting tooth and nail to advance to the biggest stage.