(Rome) The look of Novak Djokovic was enough to know how furious the Serb was against his opponent.

And it wasn’t just because Cameron Norrie hit him in the calf with a spike after the man with 22 Grand Slam titles had already turned his back and conceded the point in the second set of his Round of 16 the Italian Open which he won 6-3, 6-4.

It is that on several other occasions, Norrie showed bad sportsmanship, declared Djokovic after the meeting which allowed him to reach the quarter-finals of the tournament for a 17^e year in a row.

Djokovic was also against the medical time out taken by the Briton just before he served for the match.

“I watched the recovery (of his smash). Maybe you could say he didn’t hit me on purpose, Djokovic replied when asked about the look he gave Norrie after the incident. It wasn’t so much because of this incident. […] From the start, he did everything he was allowed to do. It may take a medical downtime. He can hit another player. He may shout:Come on !” in each other’s face after virtually every rally from the first game.

“But we all know these are unsportsmanlike gestures. This is not how we treat others, added the one who is looking for a seventh title in this tournament. I will not allow this to happen without doing or saying anything. I will always reply to that. »

Clearly motivated by the actions of Norrie, Djokovic offered one of his best performances of the season on clay against the 13^e seed, which was not made available after the match.

Under cloudy skies after a rainy morning, Djokovic appeared in full swing and in control of all aspects of his game, after tougher bouts in earlier rounds.

“I actually completed my warm-up 10 minutes before I hit the court. So I felt a little rushed, but we couldn’t (warm up) earlier because of the rain. I’m glad I overcame today’s challenge in two runs and moved on to the next round. »

Also, Djokovic had been spotted in the physiotherapy room before the game. Recently, he was out of the circuit for three weeks with a persistent problem with his right elbow, for which he had to undergo surgery in the past.

“Every day is something, mentioned Djokovic, without specifying the nature of his troubles. But luckily I was able to play and finish the game, and hopefully tomorrow I will feel a little better. »

In the end, Djokovic made half as many unforced errors as Norrie – 14 against 29 – and had two winners more – 21 against 19.

In the quarters, he will face seventh-seeded Denmark’s Holger Rune, who knocked out Australian qualifier Alexei Popyrin in three sets 6-4, 5-7, 6-4.

“He reminds me of me the way he plays,” Djokovic said of Rune. He is in great physical shape, plays very well defensively, but also very strong on the counter-attack. He can hurt you with the forehand or the backhand. He has really solid serve and aggressive returns. He is a complete player on all surfaces. […] It will be a very physical game. »

Later Tuesday, local prospect Jannik Sinner lost in three sets 6-7(3), 6-2, 6-2 to Argentina’s Francisco Cerundolo. The latter will play his next match against Casper Ruud, who beat Laslo Djere 6-1, 6-3.

Meanwhile, 2017 champion Alexander Zverev wrapped up a 6-4, 7-5 victory over JJ Wolf, a match that had been suspended due to rain at 3-3 in the second set on Monday.

Zverev will have to return to the court later on Tuesday. He will play against Daniil Medvedev.

Stefanos Tsitsipas knocked out Lorenzo Sonego 6-3, 7-6(3), another game started on Monday. On Tuesday evening, Tsitsipas will face Italian Lorenzo Musetti.

Musetti came from a one-set deficit to show Frances Tiafoe 5-7, 6-4, 6-3 out.

On the women’s side, Poland’s Iga Swiatek, two-time defending champion in Rome and number one in the WTA rankings, defeated Croatia’s Donna Vekic 6-3, 6-4 and will face Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina in the next round.

Spain’s Paula Badosa also advanced to the next round with a 6-4, 6-7 (4), 6-2 win over Karolina Muchova.