Djokovic turns back the years to beat Zverev

Sixth-seeded Djokovic topped No.3 seed Zverev, last year’s finalist, in four sets 4-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 to reach his 51st career Grand Slam semifinal — already a record for men, and just one behind Chris Evert for the overall mark — and his 13th at Roland-Garros. He is the second-oldest man in the Open era to reach the Roland-Garros semifinals after Pancho Gonzales in 1968.

“Beating one of the best players in the world on the biggest stages is something that I definitely work for, and I still, you know, push myself on a daily basis at this age because of these kinds of matches and these kinds of experiences,” Djokovic said afterwards. “It's a proven kind of testament to myself that I can and to others that I can still play on the highest level.”

Here’s how it all went down in three hours and 17 minutes.

A tactical masterclass

Djokovic made no secret of his strategy throughout the contest, either on court or in his comments afterwards. He said that variation was key in adapting to windy evening conditions — he also opted for a quick racket change after falling behind 2-0 in the first set — and changing the pace also served him well in both countering Zverev’s baseline strikes and exploiting his deep position in the court.

“Especially during the last game, my tactic was just to play drop shots,” Djokovic said. “So I played three or four in a row… Maybe you can’t see it on TV, but there is a lot of wind from one side, so it gives the sensation that you must hit twice as hard. It was important to vary the game.”

“From that end, [I] was almost playing against two players,” he later confessed. “I feel like the ball is not going anywhere you are hitting it. At one point, you know, I felt like I couldn't go through him, so I try to bring him to the net. I try to risk it with the drop shot, serve and volley. It had to be done.”

Djokovic’s willingness to mix things up was evident at various points of the match: He hit two droppers in the 24-shot rally that won him the second set, and again in a fourth-set rally that may have well turned the tide in the match had he lost it. But more on that later.

A break to start, and no more

But the match started under quite different circumstances for Djokovic. He fell behind immediately to start, as he was broken with two quick unforced errors, and Zverev was able to hit through blustery and cool Chatrier conditions the better of the two players.

Djokovic never lost serve after that — and, in fact, only faced three break points in the match. In set two, already leading 3-1, he swatted away a chance for Zverev to get the set back on serve with a blistering unreturnable serve — and held for 4-1 after four deuces. In the fourth, another opportunity came with the Serb serving at 3-2 but this time a staggering 41-shot rally secured Djokovic the point.

Twice, Zverev had the opportunity to finish the rally with an overhead, and twice he didn’t hit it solidly enough to fire a winner past Djokovic’s defences. Luring Zverev in more than once with a deft drop shot, the Serb finally got his chance to finish the final time he drew the German forward, and fired a cross-court forehand pass for the winner.

The post-point scene was one for the Louvre: Standing in place, breathing heavily with hands on hips, Djokovic paused to drink in a standing ovation from the thousands of Chatrier spectators.

One young gun down, two more to go?

With his 101st victory at the clay-court major, three-time champion Djokovic set a semifinal with top seed Jannik Sinner — their first meeting at a Grand Slam event since Sinner topped Djokovic in four sets on the way to his first Australian Open title last year. Djokovic's head-to-head with Sinner is level at 4-4, but he has lost the last three.

Should he win that, and if No.2 seed Carlos Alcaraz tops Lorenzo Musetti in the other semifinal, Djokovic may have the opportunity to achieve something never before done.

No man has defeated the top 3 ranked players to win a Grand Slam tournament in the history of the ATP rankings.