Novak Djokovic’s French Open title defense, and dominance of the No. 1 ranking, remains alive thanks to a 7-5, 6-7 (6), 2-6, 6-3, 6 comeback -0 out of 22- The Italian Lorenzo Musetti, one year old.
The third round match at Roland Garros lasted four and a half hours, and Djokovic only achieved victory after 3 a.m. in Paris, the last result in the history of the tournament.
For a period it looked like Djokovic’s annus horriblis would continue, with the 24-time Grand Slam champion in danger of suffering his first Grand Slam defeat in eight years, since falling on the same stage to Sam Querrey at Wimbledon in 2016.
Instead, he bounced back to secure his 369th Grand Slam victory, tying Roger Federer for the most in tennis history.
Djokovic took the final set and will now continue his bid for a record 25 Grand Slam titles and his fourth at Roland Garros.
Novak Djokovic beat Italian Lorenzo Musetti in four and a half hours on Saturday night
Djokovic took the final set and will continue his bid for a record 25 Grand Slam titles.
The 37-year-old has had some terrible performances this year, but this was not one of them. He wasn’t at his best, but all the credit must go to his opponent.
Musetti, 22, gave the performance of his life. With his wonderful one-handed backhand and his imaginative shots, Musetti, the 30th seed, used every inch of the vast Philippe Chatrier Arena to knock Djokovic out of position.
The favorite became out of breath while bending over with his hands on his knees, or took so much time between points that he earned a warning.
This was not the first time this couple fought in Paris. Musetti led Djokovic by two sets to win here in 2021 before completely collapsing: he only won one more game and retired due to both the humiliation and the cramps he was suffering.
Finally, he also survived Saturday. ohOnce Djokovic took the right direction in the fourth set, Musetti, ranked number 30, could not resist the charge.
Musetti used every inch of the huge Philippe Chatrier Arena to knock Djokovic out of position
Djokovic, 37, has had some terrible performances this year, but this was not one of them.
He will face the Argentine number 23, Francisco Cerundolo, for a place in the quarterfinals.
The 37-year-old is yet to reach a final this year and, until he rediscovers his best form, there are fears the greatest career in tennis history is coming to an end.
Djokovic and Musetti were due to be on court at 8:15 p.m. local time for the night session.
But because of the historically bad weather in Paris (it has rained every day of the tournament so far and there was barely any play on the outside courts on Friday or Saturday), desperate Roland Garros schedulers decided to gamble on including another match on the schedule.
That roll of the dice didn’t pay off, as first Alexander Zverev against Tallon Griekspoor and then Grigor Dimitrov against Zizou Bergs lasted longer than expected, meaning the world number one didn’t reach Philippe Chatrier until 10:36 p.m.
This was reckless scheduling on the part of Roland Garros. Yes, the weather has put them in a bind, but they should have stayed calm and hoped for an improved forecast next week; This mad rush to fill the third round on Saturday was complete madness.
