Novak Djokovic admitted he is dealing with a number of physical problems after fighting off a terrific challenge from Alejandro Davidovich Fokina to reach the fourth round of the French Open for a 14th consecutive year.
The 7-6 (4) 7-6 (5) 6-2 victory took three hours and 36 minutes, with Djokovic twice a break down in the first set and forced to save a set point in the second.
The 22-time grand-slam champion looked unsettled in windy conditions, while he called the trainer before the third set to have his left thigh massaged, but, as he so often does, he found a way to come out on top.
Asked about the medical time-out, Djokovic said: “We don’t have much time to start to name the many injuries I have, and the list is quite long.
“I still kept on playing. These are the circumstances that you, as a professional athlete, have to deal with. Accept it. Sometimes you need help from (a) physio during the match. Sometimes you need pills. Sometimes you need help from the god or angels, or whoever.
“The reality for me nowadays is that my body is responding differently than it did a few years ago. I managed to finish the match.”
Djokovic, who again wore a nanotechnology device on his chest, had struggled in his opening set against Marton Fucsovics on Wednesday before breezing through the next two, and it quickly became clear Spaniard Davidovich Fokina would offer a real test.
The 23-year-old, ranked 34, saw a break for 3-2 swiftly erased but moved ahead again to lead 6-5 after Djokovic double-faulted three times and was given a time violation.
Again, Davidovich Fokina was unable to serve it out, though, and Djokovic made him pay for the wasted opportunities by winning a tie-break.
This time the challenge very much continued in the second set as the pair exchanged breaks of serve three times, with Djokovic unable to clinch it at 5-4.
Davidovich Fokina had one chance to level the match in Djokovic’s next service game but he could not take it and the Serbian again came out on top in a tie-break.
Djokovic let his emotions out, roaring and fist-pumping, but the toll the effort had taken became clear when he called the trainer, applying ice to his left thigh and gesturing sarcastically towards the crowd.
Djokovic looked distinctly uncomfortable at times in the third set but he forged ahead early on and did not let Davidovich Fokina back in, giving a weary celebration when the Spaniard’s resistance finally ran out.
“I knew that it’s going to be a very difficult match, a very physical match,” said Djokovic.
“He contested very, very well. He’s an amazing fighter, amazing player. Congratulations to him for fighting. Bad luck but he played a great match.
“Of course a win is a win, maybe a little bit too much, three hours for two sets. I thought, if I would lose the second set, we’d probably play for five hours.
“But you have to be ready. It takes a lot of effort but we all have to believe in ourselves. I’m proud of the performance today for sure.”
The behaviour of the crowd has come under the spotlight this week, with boos frequently ringing around Roland Garros.
Of his own reaction while he received treatment, Djokovic said: “I think the majority of the people come to enjoy tennis or support one or the other player. But there are people, groups or whatever, that love to boo every single thing you do.
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“That’s something that I find disrespectful and I frankly don’t understand that. But it’s their right. They paid the ticket.
“Actually 99 per cent of the time I will stay quiet. Sometimes I will oppose that because I feel, when somebody is disrespectful, he or she deserves to have an answer to that.”
It was another day of long matches, with Italian Lorenzo Sonego fighting back from two sets down to defeat seventh seed Andrey Rublev, while Austrian qualifier Sebastian Ofner saw off Fabio Fognini in five sets.
After his epic victory over Stan Wawrinka, Australia’s Thanasi Kokkinakis was involved in another lengthy battle with 11th seed Karen Khachanov but was unable to force a decider, losing 6-4 6-1 3-6 7-6 (5).
Russian Khachanov declined to answer questions about the war in Ukraine afterwards, saying: “I am a sportsman, I am not a politician. I don’t want to talk here about politics because, first of all, I am not good at it. And, second of all, it’s not my job.”
Alcaraz begins Madrid Open campaign with emphatic win
Carlos Alcaraz continued his fine record at the Madrid Open with an emphatic 6-2 6-1 victory over Alexander Shevchenko on Friday.
The two-time defending champion made it 12 straight wins at his home tournament to ensure he will face Brazilian Thiago Seyboth Wild in the last 32.
Alcaraz was playing his first match on the ATP Tour since March 28 after being unable to compete in the Monte-Carlo Masters and Barcelona Open due to an arm injury.
But he was still able to make a fine start to his clay-court season, breaking serve in the first game and racing to victory in only one hour and eight minutes.
Data Debrief
Sometimes the scoreline can be harsh on a beaten player, but on this occasion Alcaraz was clearly dominant, breaking the Kazakh seven times in the match and forcing 11 break-point opportunities while conceding only three for his opponent.
That allowed the Spaniard to claim a dominant victory despite being broken once in each set. He will now turn his attention to a clash with Seyboth Wild, who battled past Lorenzo Musetti with a 6-4 6-4 win.
Reigning champion Sabalenka pushed by Linette at Madrid Open
Aryna Sabalenka got her Madrid Open campaign started with a 6-4 3-6 6-3 win over Magda Linette on Friday.
Sabalenka could not quite hit her peak form against Linette, but the world number two nevertheless got the job done after going the distance.
The Belarusian is hunting a record-equalling third title in Madrid, where she is the reigning champion, though she has not won back-to-back matches at a tournament since winning the Australian Open.
"It's not about being confident," Sabalenka said. "It's about how much you're ready to do to get it. It's about the hard work and to be ready, be ready for the big fights. I feel like confidence is not going to help you in those big matches. It's about staying there and fighting for it."
Data Debrief
Sabalenka (70 per cent, 56-24) is now one of five active players since 2020 to hold a winning percentage of 70 per cent or higher at WTA-1000 events.
Iga Swiatek, Simona Halep, Elena Rybakina and Jessica Pegula are the other players to feature on that list.
Rybakina continues clay winning streak with victory over Bronzetti
In-form Elena Rybakina has moved into the last 32 of the Madrid Open after a straight sets victory over Italian Lucia Bronzetti.
Number four seed Rybakina triumphed 6-4 6-3 on Friday and will next face either Marta Kostyuk or Mayar Sherif.
Rybakina was broken early in each set but ultimately had few problems getting over the line, converting four of her five break points to continue an impressive run of results after winning the Stuttgart Open last week.
She has now won five consecutive WTA matches and has 13 straight wins on clay courts to her name in a superb streak that started one year ago.
Data Debrief: Rybakina in elite company
Since the start of 2020, only two other players have claimed as many 13 consecutive WTA wins on clay, and they are Iga Swiatek and Simona Halep, so Rybakina is in elite company.
Rybakina's last defeat on this surface came in the 2023 edition of the Madrid Open, when she fell to Anna Kalinskaya in her first match, so this win represented a better start to her campaign in the Spanish capital.
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