Can Anyone Stop Djokovic? Eyes 15th French Open Quarter-Final

On Monday, Novak Djokovic will try to advance to his 15th consecutive French Open quarterfinal after unintentionally breaking a Roland Garros record.

The reigning champion and 24-time Grand Slam champion defeated Italy's Lorenzo Musetti in a brutal five-set match that ended at 3:07 a.m. on Sunday to advance to the round of 16.

The 37-year-old Djokovic stated, "I think certain things could have been handled differently."

"If the match is the last of the tournament, there is a certain beauty in winning it at three in the morning, but this wasn't the case."

In the race for a spot in the final eight, three-time French Open winner Djokovic will take on 23rd-seeded Francisco Cerundolo of Argentina on Monday.

Despite never having faced each other before, Cerundolo upset world No. 4 Alexander Zverev on clay in Madrid earlier this season to advance to the quarterfinals.

In 2023, the 25-year-old fell in five sets to Denmark's Holger Rune in the round of 16.

Zverev, who defeated Rafael Nadal, the 14-time winner, in the opening round, was nearly defeated by Tallon Griekspoor in the third round when the latter rallied from a 4-1 deficit in the decisive set.

The German player, 27, is participating in the game despite the fact that he is now facing charges of abusing his former girlfriend in Berlin.

For the seventh year running, Zverev is in the fourth round at Roland Garros. He is the only player to have advanced to the semifinals in the previous three French Opens.

In their lone prior clay-court match, which took place in Munich in 2022, Rune—a two-time Paris quarterfinalist—beat Zverev in straight sets.

Sabalenka in a Known Area

World No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka, who advanced to the semifinals in 2023 and has reached at least the last four of six Grand Slams, will face American Emma Navarro, the 22nd seed, in the women's competition.

For the first time, the 23-year-old Navarro is in the final 16 of a Grand Slam.

In the third round, Navarro overcame Madison Keys, a fellow American and the recent clay-court winner from Strasbourg.

Elena Rybakina, the fourth seed and the only woman to beat world number one Iga Swiatek on clay this season, is facing 15th seed Elina Svitolina, an experienced Ukrainian. Rybakina is a former Wimbledon winner.

French player Varvara Gracheva, who was born in Moscow, takes against Russian schoolgirl Mirra Andreeva, who is just 17 years old and the youngest woman to make it to the round of 16 on all three Slam surfaces since 1998's Anna Kournikova.

"I'm somewhat familiar with Varvara. Since we've been working out together for over two years, I know what to anticipate. Regarding her 88th-ranked opponent, Andreeva stated, "She's at a great level right now."

In the other match of the round of 16, Italian 12th seed Jasmine Paolini will take on Russian Elina Avanesyan on Monday.