PARIS – For the 41-stroke, Novak Djokovic and Alexander Zverev came and went in key rally in the fourth set of France’s Open Quarter Final on Wednesday.
After hitting the forehand winner, Djokovic then held his hand on his hips and leaned down, scanning standing ovations from thousands of Court Phillip Chatrier audiences.
No. 6 seed Djokovic, 38, proved too much for the third seeded Seedzbelev, 10 years younger and runner-up at Roland Garros last year, setting up a semi-final showdown against No. 1 Jannik Sinner on Friday.
It was Djokovic’s 101st victory at Roland Garros, the location of last year’s Olympic gold medal victory at the Paris Games, which took three hours and 17 minutes.
He has now won two wins from becoming the first player (male or female) to win the 25 Grand Slam Singles trophy.
“There was clearly a lot of tension (and) pressure, but it’s normal when you’re playing Zverev,” Djokovic said in a post-match interview. “…My game is based on a lot of running. I’m 38. It’s not easy to keep running like that, but I get it.”
The 41-stroke definition rally arrived for more than two and a half hours into the match. Djokovic took a 3-2 lead, but Zverev had a breakpoint and a chance to return to Wednesday’s game.
Djokovic won the game to score a 4-2 lead in the fourth set after erasing breakpoints.
He may have thrown a pair of three matches of losing skids this season, slipping into sixth place in the rankings, but Djokovic has not lost his determination or his ability to score his best on the big stage.
No one has been ranked number one in the rankings as Djokovic. No one has won more major championships than he totaled, or reached the major semi-finals.
“Because of this kind of match and this kind of experience, I still push myself every day at this age,” Djokovic said. “It’s a proven type of testimony to myself and to the others I can still play at the highest level.”
Still looking for the first Grand Slam title, Zverev broke Jjokovic in the first game and grabbed that advantage to win the first set.
Knowing that he didn’t suit Zverev’s fitness, Djokovic tried to keep the rally as short as possible, playing more drop shots (35 in total) to push the taller Zverev into the net.
Djokovic broke his opponent 2-1 in the second set, quickly becoming 4-1 before Zverev had time to react. He secured the second set with yet another drop shot.
The veteran then broke Zverev twice more, putting a third set in a bag to run out of steam.
“What do you want to say to me? He won these 24,” Zverev said.
Another break at the first start of the fourth set brought Djokovic up 2-0 and placed it firmly on the winning track before lapping it with the fifth match point.
There were some distractions, including a small bunch of flying insects that players kept trying to stop, and a conversation between the umpire of the chair and the fans of the fourth set.
Needless to say, Djokovic handled it all well. He also played the ball in almost every respect.
Friday’s semi-finals are an intriguing showdown. Djokovic considers many people the top players in tennis history. Djokovic and the sinner are tied 4-4 in the head-to-head series, but Thinner, who hasn’t lost a set at this French open, won the final three matchups.
“He now shows that he’s back now that he’s back,” Sinner said of Djokovic.
Djokovic said:
The report used information from the Associated Press and Reuters.
