Djokovic hits his stride as he courts history

A crucial moment arrived more than 2 1/2 hours into Novak Djokovic's 4-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 French Open quarterfinal victory over Alexander Zverev. It was the fourth set, and Djokovic led, but Zverev was in possession of a break point and a chance to get back into Wednesday's match.

Djokovic hit a barrage of drop shots to beat Zverev for his 101st victory at Roland Garros, and the Serbian said his hand was forced by windy conditions that left him feeling like he had two opponents.

"Against the wind, especially that side where I was playing the last game, I felt the wind increased in the last few games," Djokovic told reporters.

"It was almost playing against two players. I feel the ball isn't going anywhere you're hitting it. People don't see that on the TV, but on the court, you can feel it a lot.

"I was just trying to mix it up. At one point, I felt like I couldn't go through him, so I tried to bring him to the net and risk it with the drop shot, serve and volley. It had to be done.

"I was tense, to finish off the match, and he was playing consistent from the back of the court in the last game, wasn't making errors and was making me work."

Djokovic arrived in Paris having won his 100th tour-level title in Geneva to open his account in an otherwise lackluster year when he crashed out early in several big tournaments.

They engaged in a 41-stroke exchange, the longest of a buggy and breezy night, and Djokovic came out on top, smacking a forehand winner.

He stayed in place afterward, breathing heavily, with hands on hips, scanning the standing ovation from thousands of Court Philippe-Chatrier spectators. He soon held serve for a 4-2 lead in that set and was back on track.

Djokovic might be 38 now. He might have slogged through a pair of three-match losing skids this season and slid to No 6 in the rankings.

What hasn't changed is Djokovic's determination or his ability to be his best on big stages — and now he's two wins from a record 25th Grand Slam title.

Djokovic proved too much for No 3 seed Zverev, a man who's a decade younger and was last year's runner-up at Roland Garros, and set up a semifinal against No 1 Jannik Sinner.

Djokovic is pleased to show himself, and others, he's still got it.

"It was an amazing match," summarized Djokovic.

"It's a proven kind of testament to myself that I can — and to others that I can — still play on the highest level.

"I still push myself on a daily basis at this age because of these kinds of matches and these kinds of experiences," Djokovic said.

Earlier Wednesday, Sinner continued his overpowering run through the bracket by dismissing Alexander Bublik 6-1, 7-5, 6-0. Sinner not only hasn't dropped a set so far, but he has ceded a total of only 36 games through five matches.

So Friday will bring a tantalizing showdown between someone many consider the top player in tennis history, Djokovic, and someone who is at the top of the men's game at the moment, Sinner.

They are tied 4-4 head-to-head; Sinner won the last three matchups.

"He has shown now, in the last period, that he is back," Sinner said.

Djokovic has 24 major titles, and Sinner has won 3 of the past 5.

"Jannik is in tremendous form, and he has been the best player for the last couple of years," said Djokovic.

"It's going to be of course semifinals of a Grand Slam against the No 1 in the world. There is no bigger occasion for me, so I'll try to do my best to step it up and perform as well as I did tonight.

"I just hope that I will be able to physically keep up, you know, with Sinner in few days' time. It's a big challenge for me."

No one has spent more weeks at No 1 in the rankings than Djokovic. No one has won more major championships or reached more major semifinals than his total that now stands at 51 after becoming the second-oldest man to get that far in Paris. He also just claimed his 100th career title, a week before the French Open.

Sinner, 23, has won three of the past five Grand Slam titles. That includes last year's US Open and this year's Australian Open.

"He's playing fast. He's playing smart," Bublik said. "He's in another dimension with all the aspects of the game."

Also an apt description for Djokovic, who repeatedly used drop shots to great effect against Zverev.

As for Sinner, no one other than Carlos Alcaraz has been able to beat him in his last 48 matches, a stretch that dates to last August.

Sinner is 46-2 in that span, with both defeats coming against the French Open's defending champion.

And as it happens, No 2 Alcaraz is still around. He will meet No 8 Lorenzo Musetti in Friday's other semifinal.

Djokovic and Zverev were both bothered by bugs during their match.

There were some distractions in Djokovic vs Zverev, including a bunch of tiny flying insects that the players kept trying to swat away and a back-and-forth between the chair umpire and some fans in the fourth set.

Needless to say, Djokovic handled it all much better. He also was superior in pretty much every way with the ball in play.

He was broken in the very first game — and then not again.

He broke Zverev four times — no small feat against a guy broken a total of five times in his five previous matches.

"What do you want me to say? He's won 24 of these things," Zverev said.

The last time these two played each other was in the Australian Open semifinals in January, and Djokovic had to quit after one set because of an injured hamstring.

The last time Djokovic played at the French Open, 12 months ago, he had to withdraw before the quarterfinals because he tore the meniscus in his right knee and needed surgery.

He sure looks in good shape at the moment.

Agencies