Lleyton Hewitt bids for a place in his first French Open semi-final when he plays unseeded Argentinian Gaston Gaudio in the quarter finals.

Hewitt and Gaudio share a 2-2 head-to-head record but have met twice on clay in the last month with each taking a win in three sets.

Although 12th seed Hewitt is in the best clay court form of his life, Gaudio won the most recent match, at the World Teams Cup in Dusseldorf two weeks ago, 6-3 5-7 7-6.

"He's very confident on this surface, so I've got to get out there and stay aggressive and play my game," Hewitt said.

Gaudio, one of four Argentineans into the last eight, believed the quarter final would be as hard as any match he has had with Hewitt.

"It's going to be like the other ones. But I've never played him in five sets before," Gaudio said.

"It's going be tough for sure."

Hewitt charged into the quarters with a stunning 7-5 6-2 7-6(8-6) win over Xavier Malisse in the fourth round following four-set wins over clay courters Arnaud Di Pasquale and Jurgen Melzer and a come-from-behind five-set win over last year's finalist Martin Verkerk.

Gaudio has worked his way into form with tough five setters against fellow Argentinian Guillermo Canas and 14th seed Jiri Novak, a four-set win over Thomas Enquist and an emphatic 6-4 7-5 6-3 fourth round triumph over Igor Andreev.

If Hewitt beats Gaudio, he will only be the third Australian to reach the semis since Rod Laver won the title in 1969, following Phil Dent in 1977 and Pat Rafter in 1997.

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