World No. 1 Novak Djokovic cruised through to the Roland Garros fourth round on Saturday as he continued his quest for a 19th Grand Slam championship.
Djokovic produced a high-level of tennis right from the start of his 6-1, 6-4, 6-1 victory over Ricardas Berankis of Lithuania in one hour and 32 minutes on Court Philippe-Chatrier.
The 34-year-old is now through to the Last 16 in Paris for a record 12th consecutive year — breaking a tie with Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer (11 each between 2005-2016). Djokovic will next challenge 19-year-old #NextGenATP Italian Lorenzo Musetti, who came through his first five-setter over compatriot Marco Cecchinato earlier in the day.
“We [have] never faced each other, but we did practise this season on this surface, a couple of times in Monte-Carlo, and other tournaments,” said Djokovic, looking ahead to his meeting against Musetti. “I really like how he plays.
“He's got a lot of firepower from both [his] forehand and backhand. He can play with a lot of spin. He's got great feel [and] comes to the net. He can play short balls, drop shots. He can flatten out his serve. He can open up with a good kick and slice. He's really got [an] all-around game.
“He is a big challenge to me. So there is no question I have to go out playing [at] a high level, because he will not have much to lose. I'm sure he's going to come out and really try to play [the] tennis of his life one of the two big courts.”
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The Serbian superstar, who lifted the 2016 Roland Garros trophy, improved to a 23-3 match record in 2021. He struck 30 winners and lost just five of his first-service points (37/42) for his fourth straight ATP Head2Head win over Berankis.
Djokovic won 20 of the first 28 points and it wasn't until 23 minutes of play that Berankis held serve. Djokovic struck his 11th winner to complete the opener, then showcased great flexibility in the fifth game of the second set for another service break.
Djokovic, who is in Federer's quarter of the draw, won five straight games from 5-4 up in the second set and came within one point of a 5-0 lead in the third set, but the Serbian over-hit a forehand.
So far this season, Djokovic has captured his ninth Australian Open crown (d. Medvedev) in February and last week clinched the 83rd title of his career at the Belgrade Open (d. Molcan). He also finished runner-up at the Internazionali BNL d'Italia in Rome (l. to Nadal).
Djokovic produced a high-level of tennis right from the start of his 6-1, 6-4, 6-1 victory over Ricardas Berankis of Lithuania in one hour and 32 minutes on Court Philippe-Chatrier.
The 34-year-old is now through to the Last 16 in Paris for a record 12th consecutive year — breaking a tie with Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer (11 each between 2005-2016). Djokovic will next challenge 19-year-old #NextGenATP Italian Lorenzo Musetti, who came through his first five-setter over compatriot Marco Cecchinato earlier in the day.
“We [have] never faced each other, but we did practise this season on this surface, a couple of times in Monte-Carlo, and other tournaments,” said Djokovic, looking ahead to his meeting against Musetti. “I really like how he plays.
“He's got a lot of firepower from both [his] forehand and backhand. He can play with a lot of spin. He's got great feel [and] comes to the net. He can play short balls, drop shots. He can flatten out his serve. He can open up with a good kick and slice. He's really got [an] all-around game.
“He is a big challenge to me. So there is no question I have to go out playing [at] a high level, because he will not have much to lose. I'm sure he's going to come out and really try to play [the] tennis of his life one of the two big courts.”
Follow Live Scores At RolandGarros.com
The Serbian superstar, who lifted the 2016 Roland Garros trophy, improved to a 23-3 match record in 2021. He struck 30 winners and lost just five of his first-service points (37/42) for his fourth straight ATP Head2Head win over Berankis.
Djokovic won 20 of the first 28 points and it wasn't until 23 minutes of play that Berankis held serve. Djokovic struck his 11th winner to complete the opener, then showcased great flexibility in the fifth game of the second set for another service break.
Djokovic, who is in Federer's quarter of the draw, won five straight games from 5-4 up in the second set and came within one point of a 5-0 lead in the third set, but the Serbian over-hit a forehand.
So far this season, Djokovic has captured his ninth Australian Open crown (d. Medvedev) in February and last week clinched the 83rd title of his career at the Belgrade Open (d. Molcan). He also finished runner-up at the Internazionali BNL d'Italia in Rome (l. to Nadal).