(Paris) Novak Djokovic qualified for the quarter-finals of Roland-Garros on Sunday by dominating the Peruvian Juan-Pablo Varillas (94e world) 6-3, 6-2, 6-2 and advances to this stage of the tournament for the 17e times, new record.
Rafael Nadal played 16 quarters in the Parisian Major which he won 14 times, while Djokovic is aiming for a third title there to bring the record for Grand Slam titles to 23.
The Serbian, 3e world at 36, is about to play his 55e quarter-final in a Grand Slam tournament (the record of 58 is held by Roger Federer and Nadal has 47). He has always reached the quarters in Paris since 2010.
To climb into the last four, where the long-awaited duel against the world No.1 and other big favorite of the tournament Carlos Alcaraz could take place, he will first have to dismiss the Russian Karen Khachanov (11e), which eliminated the Italian Lorenzo Sonego (48e) 1-6, 6-4, 7-6 (9/7), 6-1.
Varillas was playing in the main draw of a Grand Slam tournament for the third time and had never won a match in such a tournament before.
He was the first Peruvian to reach the round of 16 at Roland Garros since Jaime Yzaga in 1994.
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova back in the quarter-finals
Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, out of the circuit for most of the 2022 season due to a long-term left knee injury, is back in the quarter-finals at Roland-Garros after her victory over Belgian Elise Mertens (28e) 3-6, 7-6, 6-3.
PHOTO EMMANUEL DUNAND, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
Before Roland-Garros, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova had won only five games on the main circuit since her return in early 2023.
Pavlyuchenkova made it to the final of the 2021 Porte d’Auteuil edition, where she lost against the Czech Barbora Krecjikova. Climbed up to 11e world place in November 2021, the 31-year-old Russian hardly played the following year, the fault of a painful left knee.
“I’m really proud of myself, it was an incredible match,” said Pavlyuchenkova in French, who trailed by a set and a break in this first knockout round of the women’s table.
“I’m super happy to be here again on this Central court, after my injury I hardly played for a year, it’s exceptional, incredible for me,” she added.
Before Roland-Garros, Pavlyuchenkova had won only five matches on the main circuit since her return in early 2023. She won almost as many in just one week on Parisian clay.
Against Mertens, she had to fight for more than three hours and had a little trouble finishing. Leading 5 games to 1 in the deciding set, she got three first match points, but did not win until two games later, on her fifth opportunity.
PHOTO EMMANUEL DUNAND, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
Elise Mertens
Dropped beyond 300e world place, and entered the main draw thanks to a protected classification, Pavlyuchenkova is the lowest ranked quarter-finalist in a Grand Slam since 2017 (Kanepi at the United States Open).
For a place in the last four, Pavlyuchenkova will face either Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka, world No.2, or American Sloane Stephens, finalist on Parisian clay in 2018.
Sabalenka and Stephens face off in the evening in the first evening session featuring a women’s poster.
Ball boy hit by ball leads to disqualification
Women’s doubles player Miyu Kato and her partner were forced to forfeit after Kato accidentally hit a ballboy in the neck after a point on Sunday.
In the second set of a match played on court 14, Kato swung her racket and the ball flew towards the ball girl, who was not looking in the direction of the player.
At first, the chair umpire Alexandre Juge only gave the Japanese a warning. But after tournament referee Rémy Azemar and Grand Slam supervisor Wayne McEwen went to court 14 to check on what had happened, Kato and his partner, Indonesian Aldila Sutjiadi, been disqualified.
Thus, the Czech Marie Bouzkova and the Spaniard Sara Sorribes Tormo were declared victorious.
Bouzkova said she did not see the ball hit the ball boy, but added that “she cried for like 15 minutes”.
“It’s just a bad situation for everyone,” Bouzkova added. “But it’s something that I guess is in the regulations as such, although it’s very unfortunate for them. […] In the end, it was the referee’s decision. »
Associated Press
