Novak Djokovic outlasts Lorenzo Musetti in marathon French Open third-round match that ended just after 3 a.m.

CNN
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It was a long day at Roland Garros for world number 1 Novak Djokovic.

The 24-time major champion outlasted Italian Lorenzo Musetti 7-5 6-7 (6-8) 2-6 6-3 6-0 in a five-set third-round thriller that ended at 3:08, local time in Paris.

The Serbian, 37, found himself down two sets to one but rallied to beat the 22-year-old in four hours and 29 minutes on the Philippe-Chatrier court, breaking the record for the last match completed at Roland -Garros of almost two hours.

After winning the match, Djokovic raised his arms in the air as spectators who stayed until the early hours gave him a standing ovation, including his wife, Jelena.

Djokovic thanked fans in an on-court interview for giving him a boost in the crucial fourth set.

“Tough. Will to attack, will to win, not to give up, really at one point I didn’t feel comfortable on the pitch at all,” he said.

“He played so well. I didn’t know what to do to be honest, I was going into the net but he was getting every ball, passing shots, serving well, playing well and making very few unforced errors.

“At the start of the fourth set, I guess that’s when the match was decided. The crowd supported me and I’m really grateful for that because I needed that, I needed that push, I needed that energy and, of course, I’m very happy to finish with a fifth incredible set.

The start time was delayed by about two hours on a rainy day, but officially started just after 10:30 p.m. local time.

“I don’t want to get into that. I have my opinions but I think there are big things to be said in this match today,” Djokovic said of the schedule, according to Reuters.

“Lorenzo and my performances stand out so I don’t want to talk about the schedule. I think some things could have been handled in a different way, but there is also a beauty in winning a match (this late).

The previous tournament record for the final match was at 1:25 a.m. local time, occurring in 2020 when Rafael Nadal faced Jannik Sinner.

The reigning French Open winner, who tied Roger Federer in the all-time rankings with his 369th Grand Slam victory, will face Argentina’s Francisco Cerúndolo in the fourth round on Monday.