French Open 24 : Djokovic withdraws , Zverev wins a thriller , Sinner v Alcaraz semis

 


Novak Djokovic, the world No. 1 and defending champion, has withdrawn from the French Open due to a torn medial meniscus sustained during his dramatic five-set victory over Francisco Cerúndolo, the Argentine 23rd seed, on Monday. In a statement, Djokovic expressed his regret for withdrawing and wished the remaining players good luck. The back-to-back matches, each lasting over four hours, took a toll on the 37-year-old, who had been playing with the injury.


Meanwhile, Alexander Zverev needed five sets for the second consecutive time at Roland Garros to reach the quarter-finals. The German fourth seed defeated 13th seed Holger Rune 4-6, 6-1, 5-7, 7-6 (2), 6-2 in a fourth-round match that lasted four hours and 11 minutes. This marks the sixth time Zverev has reached the quarter-finals at Roland Garros, making him the sixth man to achieve this in the current century.


Zverev will face Australia's Alex de Minaur for a spot in the semi-finals, aiming to reach the last-four for the fourth consecutive time in the clay-court major. De Minaur notably upset fifth seed Daniil Medvedev in a fourth-round match on Monday. Zverev had earlier needed five sets to overcome 26th seed Tallon Griekspoor in the third round, in another match extending over four hours.


Despite initial discomfort with Holger Rune's varied shots, which cost him the opening set, Zverev dominated the second set, only to lose the third again. Under pressure, Zverev fluffed breaks and had to serve to stay in the set and match. Down 0-15, he forced a tiebreaker and dominated it. Zverev then used his heavy hitting and groundstrokes to ease past Rune in the final set.


In another quarter-final, a rematch of last year's final was anticipated, with Novak Djokovic set to take on Casper Ruud, who eliminated No. 12 Taylor Fritz 7-6 (6), 3-6, 6-4, 6-2 on Monday. However, with Djokovic retiring from the French Open due to his knee injury, Ruud will advance directly to the semi-finals.


In the women's draw, Iga Swiatek raced into the semi-finals with another blistering win, defeating Potapova 6-0, 6-0.


New world No. 1 Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz maintained their dazzling form with fluent victories. Sinner beat Grigor Dimitrov, while Alcaraz prevailed over Stefanos Tsitsipas in straight sets. Sinner and Alcaraz will now meet each other in the semi-finals.




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