Novak Djokovic edged past Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti in the third round of the French Open in a match that finished at 3am local time.
The Serbian did not even get on the court until nearly 11pm after rain had affected play at Roland Garros but he got the job done, winning 7-5, 6-7, (6-8), 2-6, 6-3, 6-0.
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Djokovic is defending his title in Paris but suffered a serious scare from the No.30 seed but at 2-1 down he clicked into gear and swung the momentum of the match in his favour.
He eased to victory in the deciding set, winning 6-0 before pulling Musetti into an embrace in the middle of the court.
The match lasted four hours and 29 minutes and edged the 37-year-old a step closer to his fourth French Open title, setting up a match against Francisco Cerundolo in the last 16.
Speaking after the match, Djokovic said: “I don’t want to get into it [the schedule].
Djokovic wanted to thank the Paris crowd after his match. In French, obviously 🇫🇷#ROLANDGARROS PIC.TWITTER.COM/MHVQ7LY0YH
— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) JUNE 2, 2024
“I have my opinions but I think there are great things to talk about in this match today.
“Both Lorenzo and my performances stand out so I don’t want to be talking about the schedule.
“I think some things could have been handled a different way but there’s also a beauty in winning a match [so late].”
Musetti, who is only 22 years old, came from 4-1 down in the second set to force a tie-breaker, before breaking the veteran twice in the third set to go ahead in the match.
But Djokovic’s experience and power was on full display at 2-2 and he was able to find an extra gear and swing the game in his favour to advance.
