RAFAEL NADAL has celebrated many a joyeux anniversaire at Roland Garros over the years but his 29th birthday promises to be an occasion like no other.

Roland Garros played host to the first-ever tour level match between the Mallorcan and Novak Djokovic back in 2006 and it will do so again as late Wednesday afternoon turns into evening for the 44th meeting in this remarkable and long-running series.

Thanks to Nadal's slide down the rankings, it is only a quarter final, yet seldom has there been as much on the line. While the Mallorcan is building confidence round by round as he pursues what is being known as La Decima, his tenth French Open title, victory would make Djokovic a short price favourite to land the Coupe des Mousquetaires, the only Grand Slam trophy that still eludes him.

Even the form guide is hedging it's bets on this one. The Serb, who has lost just two matches all year, has won five of the last six meetings between the players, including a dismissive 6-3, 6-3 win in the Monte Carlo final. Nadal, on the other hand, has won the last four Grand Slam meetings between the pair, and all six of their previous encounters at Roland Garros. He has lost just once here full stop, in the 2009 fourth round, to Sweden's Robin Soderling.

"Of course he is by far the best player in the world," admits Nadal. "He is brimming with confidence. He has exceptional form. He's won almost all the matches since the start of the year.

"I played well in Monte Carlo," he added. "I lost 6-3, 6-3 but I played great. It was an easy result, not an easy match. Here it's Roland Garros and it's a different tournament. I love these courts. I will pull out all the stops to win the match. If I don't win I will think about the next tournament."

"Of course it is a different approach mentally when you play Nadal in the quarter-finals than any other player," acknowledged his Serbian adversary. "I don't want to spend too much energy before getting on court because I know that for me it is necessary to have every source of strength and energy possible. I know what I need to do to have a chance to win. That doesn't mean that I will win. The future is unpredictable. The pressure is on both of us with people expecting us to win the tournament. You have to deal with it and go out and play."

There will be a tendency to declare the winner of this match a premature victor of the tournament but that would do others a disservice. Particularly given how these two have been known to beat up on each other over four hours or more. Not least of these, of course, should he make it beyond David Ferrer, is a certain Andy Murray.

"Obviously it's a huge match any time those guys play against each other, especially in the majors or finals of the events on the tour," said the Scot. "Rafa seems to be playing very well so far. I think the conditions here suit him and he's more comfortable than anywhere else on the tour. It should be much closer than Monte Carlo."