Novak Djokovic still comes out in five sets against Francisco Cerundolo

The defending champion at Roland Garros beat the Argentinian on Monday, after a match that seemed to escape him, before winning after more than four hours of play.

This time again, number 1 stood up. Already close to elimination in the previous round, Novak Djokovic overthrew Francisco Cerundolo (seeded n°23) in the round of 16 at Roland-Garros, Monday June 3 on the Philippe-Chatrier court (6-1, 5- 7, 3-6, 7-5, 6-3). Coming out victorious in a marathon match against Lorenzo Musetti at three in the morning on the night of Saturday to Sunday, the Serb appeared far from his best level and physically affected, but found the resources to reach the quarter-finals.

Novak Djokovic, winner of 24 Grand Slams and defending champion at Roland Garros at 37, is finally feeling the weight of the years, but is not ready to give up his place. Not at his best physically from the second round, the world number one once again seemed overwhelmed, before dominating an inconsistent Francisco Cerundolo who was paralyzed by the challenge. The Serbian will face Taylor Fritz (seeded no. 12) or Casper Ruud (seeded no. 7) in the quarter-finals.

Novak Djokovic went for a demonstration on the Philippe-Chatrier court, against an opponent who was only experiencing his second match at this level of a Grand Slam, after a first round of 16 at Porte d’Auteuil in 2023. The Serb dominated the first set before collapsing in the next two, particularly physically challenged, sometimes ignoring certain defensive runs, head down (8 winning shots for Francisco Cerundolo in the first set, 19 in the second).

After two games in the second set, and 52 minutes of play, the world number 1 called in the physiotherapist for discomfort in his knee and right thigh. Handled by the trainer twice, he then appeared limping, also annoyed by his uneven level. Francisco Cerundolo missed several opportunities in the second act, Novak Djokovic delaying the deadline on eight break points, before cracking on the Argentine’s first set point on his put in play.

The “Djoker”, even when pushed by the public in difficulty, seemed overwhelmed by events for a long time, with his bad-day face. Broken from the start in the third set, he never worried his opponent on his play, winning only nine points on the Argentinian’s serve in the third set, conceded without a fight.

In difficulty with lateral runs and changes of direction, “Nole” shortened the rallies to stay alive in the match. Often on reprieve, sometimes saved by gross errors in return from his opponent, the world number 1 remained in the match thanks to an efficient serve and good first racket shots.

Broken in the fourth set and without service ammunition (44% of first serves in the fourth set), Novak Djokovic seemed definitively beaten. But paralyzed by the challenge, Francisco Cerundolo let him return to the game by conceding the break, and the world number 1 gradually found his legs, as against Lorenzo Musetti in the previous round.

After winning the fourth set, on his fourth set point on the opponent’s serve, the Serb regained decent mobility and even a smile, after a split volley. And in the final round, even after losing his entry break, the outcome seemed inevitable: Novak Djokovic won, at the end of his longest match at Roland-Garros (4h38). At the same time, he surpasses Roger Federer’s record for Grand Slam victories, now set at 370.