“I was points away from losing,” Novak Djokovic battles through another Roland Garros epic against Francisco Cerundolo to break Roger Federer’s long-standing record

Djokovic becomes the first male player to win 370 Grand Slam matches.

“I was points away from losing,” Novak Djokovic battles through another Roland Garros epic against Francisco Cerundolo to break Roger Federer’s long-standing record

Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer (via Imago)

Defending champion Novak Djokovic staged a remarkable comeback from being two sets to one down, overcoming a knee injury to defeat Francisco Cerundolo and secure a place in the French Open quarter-finals. This victory followed a grueling match against Lorenzo Musetti in the previous round, but as he often does, the 24-time Grand Slam champion found a way to triumph, winning 6-1, 5-7, 3-6, 7-5, 6-3 in a match that lasted four hours and 39 minutes.

This was the first encounter between Djokovic and Cerundolo. The Argentine will likely regret missing the opportunity to achieve a significant victory and reach his first Grand Slam quarter-final. On the other hand, Djokovic advances to the quarter-finals of a major tournament for the 59th time and will continue his pursuit of a fourth French Open title, facing Casper Ruud next.

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Three or four times, I was points away from losing this match, and thank you to my opponent. He deserves so much applause that's for sure. I'm not sure how I won this match.
Novak Djokovic said in his post-match interview

This victory means that Djokovic stands alone in terms of most Grand Slam matches won by an ATP player. The Serbian now has 370 wins at this level, breaking the tie with his great rival Roger Federer, who won 369 Grand Slam matches.

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Cerundolo had the momentum until the end of the third set as he took two sets to one lead over Djokovic. The Serbian found himself 2-4 down in the fourth set before winning five of the next six games to level the match.

With the momentum firmly back on Djokovic’s side, he waited for his moment to pounce, and he did in the eighth game of the final set. After securing the only break in the decider, the defending champion closed it out comfortably to reach yet another Grand Slam quarter-final.

Novak Djokovic clashes with the Roland Garros organizers after major tumble

The fourth-round match between Novak Djokovic and Francisco Cerundolo was historic for the Serbian. However, the match wasn’t without its fair share of controversy.

Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic reacts to winning a point (via Imago)

In the fourth game of the fifth set, Djokovic tried to get to Cerundolo’s forehand to his right. However, the top seed took a major tumble before the officials came running in to help him. Thankfully for all the Djokovic fans, their hero didn’t suffer any serious injury.

After he got up, Djokovic was raging at the French Open organizers for making the players compete in humid conditions. The Serbian sarcastically complimented the officials, and the chair umpires for not understanding the risks of playing in such weather.

Fortunately for the three-time French Open champion, the incident didn’t impact the result, as Djokovic emerged victorious in five sets. He will now face Casper Ruud in the quarter-finals in a repeat of last year’s final. The Serbian won the 2023 final in straight sets, but Ruud got the better of the World No. 1 in their most recent meeting in Monte Carlo.

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