Paris ? Hopping in place in a hallway leading to the court, Rafael Nadal was drenched with sweat before he smacked a ball in his French Open quarterfinal.

A study in perpetual motion, Nadal actually got a bit of a breather Wednesday, when Novak Djokovic of Serbia-Montenegro quit with a back injury after losing the first two sets. That put defending champion Nadal into the semifinals at Roland Garros with what goes into the books as his 58th consecutive victory on clay, extending his record.

“The fact that today’s match was, I wouldn’t say ‘comfortable,’ but low-intensity, is going to help Rafael,” said Nadal’s coach and uncle, Toni. “It’s great to compensate for the long matches he’s had.”

That’s hardly good news for Nadal’s next opponent, Ivan Ljubicic, who beat Julien Benneteau of France, 6-2, 6-2, 6-3, to reach his first semifinal in 27 trips to Grand Slam tournaments.

With No. 2 Nadal facing No. 4 Ljubicic, and No. 1 Roger Federer playing No. 3 David Nalbandian on Friday, it’s the first time since 1985 that the men seeded 1-4 at the French Open all made the semifinals.