Novak Djokovic rallies for last victory in Roland-Garros history

PARIS — Novak Djokovic’s title defense at Roland Garros — and his stay at No. 1 in the rankings — are still alive thanks to a 7-5, 6-7 (6), 2-6, 6- 3, 6- 0 against 22-year-old Lorenzo Musetti in a third-round match that lasted 4 and a half hours and only ended after 3 a.m. Sunday, the last finish in tournament history.

This is Djokovic’s 369th Grand Slam victory, tying Roger Federer for the highest ranking in tennis history.

Djokovic briefly appeared to be in trouble against Musetti but ran away with the final set and will now continue his quest for a record 25th Grand Slam title and a fourth at Roland Garros.

Gasping for breath as he bent over with his hands on his knees, or taking so long between points that he merited a warning, Djokovic, 37, looked exhausted at times against his much younger Italian opponent. Musetti was propelled into the lead thanks to a one-handed backhand, a deft touch at the net and a 5-for-5 success rate on break chances.

But Djokovic is determined to resolve the issues. And once Djokovic headed in the right direction in the fourth set, thanks to more aggressive play on service returns and closer to the baseline during groundstroke exchanges, Musetti, 30th, didn’t could not withstand the load.

A telling statistic: Djokovic improved to 39-11 in the fifth set of his career; Musetti fell to 2-6.

Djokovic has spent more weeks at the top of the ATP rankings than anyone else, but if he fails to return to the final at Roland Garros, he will cede that spot to Musetti’s compatriot, current No. 2 Jannik Sinner.

Indeed, a defeat in this match would have been the latest in a string of disappointing results in 2024 for the often dominant Djokovic, who has won 12 of the last 20 Grand Slams he has entered and has not been beaten as well. early in a major tournament. since the Australian Open in January 2017.

Not only did he not win a trophy in any tournament this season, he didn’t even reach a final.

That’s why, a week ago, Djokovic assessed his state of mind arriving in Paris with a record of 14-6 this year: “Low expectations and high hopes.”

Those words could also have described Djokovic’s thoughts before the fourth set against Musetti, who has never made it past the fourth round at a Grand Slam.

Bundled spectators frequently chanted Djokovic’s first name, or his two-syllable nickname, “No-le.” Musetti also heard a lot of support at the Philippe Chatrier court. The noise echoed off the underside of the retractable roof, which was closed due to downpours that arrived earlier Saturday, the fifth straight day of rain.

This weather is partly responsible for the fact that Djokovic and Musetti did not set foot on the court until 10:30 p.m., more than two hours later than initially planned. Tournament organizers moved an additional competition to the main stadium out of the rain before Djokovic-Musetti to try to ensure the third round would finish on time.

“I don’t want to get into it,” Djokovic said when asked about the decision to move his match. “I have my opinions, but I think there are great things to say as we talk about this match today and about Lorenzo and my performance, which stands out.

“I don’t want to talk about timing. I think some things could have been handled differently, but there’s also beauty. I guess winning the match also at 3:30 a.m. if it’s the last one of the tournament, but it’s not.”

It was a rematch of the 2021 French Open, when Musetti was just 19 – and making his Grand Slam debut – and won the first two sets against Djokovic, both in tiebreakers. But Djokovic didn’t go away, taking the next two sets, and Musetti ultimately withdrew from the match with lower back pain and cramping while trailing 4-0 in the fifth.

Once again, Musetti took the advantage before succumbing to Djokovic.

This time, Djokovic was actually one point away from taking a two-set lead as he led 6-5 in the second set tiebreaker. But he sent a mediocre lob that turned into a Musetti header, erasing that opportunity for Djokovic. Then Djokovic missed a forehand wide to give Musetti his first chance at a set point, which was converted with a volley winner.

During the ensuing changeover, Djokovic had an exchange with chair umpire Adel Nour about whether the clay needed to be cleaned more frequently.

“So it’s a problem to sweep the field every five games?” » asked Djokovic. “I ask you to sweep the field, because there is so much clay. I don’t know why it is so requested at 1 a.m. after waiting 20 hours to play.”

He would also drop the next set.

Musetti must have known that Djokovic would not go quietly. Surely, the bundled up and vocal fans did too.

Suddenly, Djokovic broke the score at 3-2 in the fourth set. He clenched his fist and, while sitting in his side chair, motioned for the fans to make more noise. They obliged.

A similar scene played out at the end of this set, with Djokovic making a long run to reach for a ball and bring it back over the net at an impossible angle. He waved his arms then pointed to his ear.

Soon he was the winner, roaring on the field while his wife jumped and screamed in the stands.

Earlier on Saturday, fourth-seeded Alexander Zverev came back from 4-1 down in the fifth set to beat 26th-seeded Tallon Griekspoor of the Netherlands 3-6, 6-4, 6-2, 4-6, 7 -6 (3) and thus qualifies. the fourth round.

Zverev, who won the Italian Open last month, reached the semifinals at the last three French Opens and avoided his first French Open exit since his first-round defeat in 2017.

Zverev’s trial in Germany for allegedly inflicting bodily harm on a woman began on Friday. The prosecution accuses Zverev of pushing his ex-partner against a wall and strangling her during an argument in Berlin in May 2020.

Griekspoor failed to reach the fourth round of a major tournament for the first time and his record against the top five players fell to 0-11.

Among the other men, in the third round, former US Open champion Daniil Medvedev won 7-6 (4), 7-5, 1-6, 6-4 against Tomas Machac and Canadian Felix Auger -Aliassime, 21st seed, beat the 15th. American Ben Shelton, top seed, 6-4, 6-2, 6-1.

Their match was interrupted by rain on Friday evening. Shelton was bothered by a left shoulder problem and had it treated by a trainer.

“Playing a set last night with soaked balls, muddy balls, I guess, aggravated my shoulder a little bit,” Shelton said. “But I went out there and did what I could today and gave it 100 percent.”

His exit was followed a few hours later by that of another American, No. 14 Tommy Paul, who was beaten by Argentinian Francisco Cerundolo (No. 23) 3-6, 6-3, 6-3 , 6-2. That left just one American player in the group: No. 12 Taylor Fritz, who outlasted unseeded Australian Thanasi Kokkinakis 6-3, 6-2, 6-7 (4), 5 -7, 6-3 on the night to earn a first fourth-round appearance in Paris.

Fritz, who has reached the quarterfinals in each of the other three major tournaments, is the first player from his country to reach the men’s round of 16 at Roland Garros since 2020.

It was clear when Shelton’s match resumed that he wasn’t able to produce his usual big-power serves — even before his left shoulder was massaged by a trainer. Auger-Aliassime, who reached the semifinals of the US Open in 2021, won the first five matches on Saturday to close out the first set and lead 4-0 in the next.

“I felt like my intentions were clear, my execution was good and I was able to do what I wanted to do,” said Auger-Aliassime, who now plays No. 3 Carlos Alcaraz, “and at the same time, getting free points from him and able to perform his service quite well.

For the fifth straight day, rain interrupted play. Shortly before 1 p.m., the rain returned with a cold wind and the temperature dropped to 14 degrees (57 F).

Medvedev wore pads in his first set against Machac, who beat Djokovic last week in the Geneva Open semifinals, then took them off for the second set.

There was an unusual moment at the end of the match when chair umpire Damien Dumusois picked up a pigeon that had fallen on the field.

The Associated Press and ESPN’s D’Arcy Maine contributed to this story.