ROLAND GARROS, LATEST NEWS: Novak Djokovic Defeats Alexander Zverev

The sky cleared over the open roof of the “Philippe Chatrier” central court this evening after a gloomy morning, but it was bright on the court too, where Novak Djokovic (ATP No. 6), in four sets, gave a tennis lesson to Germany’s Alexander Zverev (No. 3 seed), winning 5:7, 6:3, 6:2, 6:4.

He also surpassed Rafa’s record for the number of matches played at Roland Garros, reaching 117 appearances on the courts of Bois de Boulogne, albeit with a different win-loss record. The next opponent for the contender chasing a seemingly unreachable 25th Grand Slam crown tomorrow will be Italy’s Jannik Sinner, currently the world’s No. 1 player, who easily defeated Kazakhstan’s Alexander Bublik in three sets, without much effort, with a score of 6:1, 7:5, 6:0.

It was a true tennis rhapsody last night, with the Serb as the conductor. However, it didn’t seem that way at the beginning. Novak wasn’t concentrated enough on his first serve in the match, and Zverev, as soon as he stepped onto the clay of “Chatrier,” broke his serve, forcing the greatest tennis player of all time to chase the result for a good part of the first set.

Djokovic changed his racket on the next serve and took control of his service game, but the German of Russian origin also demonstrated what he is known for and what, as Novak previously noted, makes his time on court easier. At 4:2 for Zverev, the German earned jeers for “telling on” Novak to the umpire about a ball that “wiped” the line. Our tennis player won his game, he was in the mood to play, he varied his shots during longer rallies, and showed confidence at the net. With a brilliant drop shot backhand diagonal, Djokovic earned a break point, but after a long rally, he failed to convert this advantage. It would turn out 46 minutes later that the early game deficit was enough to lose the set.

Before the match, Novak spoke about the importance of serve, mental games in this segment of play, peripheral vision, and the significance of outwitting the opponent in this way. He managed this much better at the start of the 2nd set against Zverev. Now the German had to catch up.

Novak’s drop shots worked perfectly. With skillful maneuvers at the net, he waited for an opportunity to step up in this set. And he seized it. He made the first break, took a 3:1 lead, and then, after a big fight, successfully served it out. “Chatrier” erupted in applause at the Serb’s brilliance after a diagonal shot during a long wide-stride rally, but Zverev still managed to “pull out” that service game later. The play was intense, it was a real spectacle under the floodlights, the kind of match that draws crowds to watch tennis. Novak had three consecutive set points on his serve, and he converted the last one with a long, intricate rally on the clay.

Both served confidently at the start of the 3rd set, and then in the 5th game, Novak showed stronger nerves and secured a break. After long rallies, his drop shots were executed to perfection, his forehand parallel shots hit the 45-degree angle, and his volleys were poetry. “Idemo!” (Let’s go!) – cheered the Parisian “Srbikosi” from the box, and this time, Novak’s old acquaintance from Geneva, the lucky recipient of a towel from the previous match, followed them in a blue and white Argentinian jersey. It wasn’t Zverev’s serve, his main weapon, that betrayed the German, but rather the quality of Djokovic’s returns. On the new break, he didn’t even wait for the umpire’s decision on the length of Sascha’s shot; he received confirmation of what he already knew on the bench. “Ajmo, brate!” (Come on, brother!) – cheered Nole’s fans from the stands.

Zverev was disheartened because he was doing everything he could, but to no avail. Novak flawlessly concluded the third set, with the scoreboard showing two hours and 15 minutes of play. When you play well, luck follows. The net helped Novak at the beginning of the 4th set, but everything else in that game he did himself to immediately break his opponent’s serve. He demonstrated textbook tennis. He sent lethal returns, bending like he was made of rubber. Zverev even got a break point, cheered on by spectators eager for competition, but Novak reached impossible shots and received a standing ovation. Given how he played, he deserved it.