Defending champion Rafael Nadal racked up his 90th win at Roland Garros on Sunday and admitted he would have considered it "impossible" if he was told as a teenage debutant in 2005 that he'd still be breaking records in Paris into his 30s.

Stan Wawrinka knocked Greek star Stefanos Tsitsipas out of the French Open with a thrilling victory in the longest match of the tournament on Sunday, setting up a quarter-final against Roger Federer.

The Spanish second seed and 11-time champion stormed into the quarter-finals for the 13th time by sweeping past Argentina's Juan Ignacio Londero 6-2, 6-3, 6-3.

On Monday, he will celebrate his 33rd birthday as he plots a way past either Japan's Kei Nishikori or Benoit Paire of France in what will be his 38th career Slam quarter-final.

"Obviously when I was 18, thinking that I could still be here at the age of 33, it was probably something incredible and impossible to think about," said Nadal.

"Some people thought that I would finish my career earlier.

"Luckily, despite all the problems I had, the most positive thing is that I managed to maintain the desire and pleasure."

"But even when you had a low moment, I always found the motivation to continue. People kept saying I would have a very short career because of the way I play. Luckily, they were wrong."

That motivation has seen him capture the Paris titles between 2005-08 and 2010-14 and again in 2017 and 2018.

He has lost just two matches in that time -- to Robin Soderling in the 2009 last-16 and Novak Djokovic in the 2015 quarter-finals.

Nadal's 90 wins at Roland Garros are just eight short of the record held by Jimmy Connors at the U.S. Open.

Wawrinka takes five hours to win

A stunning winner from yards behind the baseline secured a 7-6 (8/6), 5-7, 6-4, 3-6, 8-6 fourth-round triumph for 2015 champion Wawrinka after five hours and nine minutes on Court Suzanne Lenglen.

The 34-year-old has a 23-3 losing head-to-head record against close friend and fellow Swiss Federer, who saw off Argentinian world number 68 Leonardo Mayer 6-2, 6-3, 6-3 earlier in the day.

"It's incredible, lots of emotions. Thanks to all the fans for staying and (the) support," said Wawrinka after the third longest match in the last 20 years at the French Open.

"It's for these kinds of emotions that I live for after coming back from injury."

It is the first time Wawrinka has reached a Grand Slam quarter-final since losing to Rafael Nadal in the 2017 Roland Garros final and completes an amazing turnaround from 12 months ago.

Last year, the three-time Grand Slam champion, following injury struggles, lost in the first round to Guillermo Garcia-Lopez and dropped out of the world's top 250.

The 20-year-old Tsitsipas missed out on the chance for a rematch with Federer, having beaten the 20-time major title winner in the Australian Open fourth round earlier this year.

Wawrinka, seeded 24th, saved 22 of the 27 break points he faced, including all eight in the final set as sixth seed Tsitsipas pushed for victory to no avail.

Evergreen Federer marches on

Federer, the 2009 champion in Paris, is the oldest man to make the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam tournament since Jimmy Connors at the 1991 U.S. Open.

"It's fabulous that I can spend this time in Paris," said Federer who last played the tournament in 2015 when he lost in the quarter-finals to Wawrinka.

"I was prepared for the worst scenario, losing in the first round in three sets. But I am super happy with my performance."

Federer will be playing in his 54th quarter-final at a Slam, cementing his place on top of the all-time men's list.

Federer, who is yet to drop a set in the tournament, said he still remembers his last-eight loss to Wawrinka in Paris four years ago.

"I have a bad memory of it. Stan beat me in three sets with his terrible shorts!"