French Open: Djokovic Defeats Zverev to Reach Record 51st Grand Slam Semifinal

Paris – Novak Djokovic, seeded sixth, overcame third seed and last year’s finalist Alexander Zverev in four sets — 4-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 — to advance to a record-breaking 51st Grand Slam semifinal at the French Open.

This marks Djokovic’s 13th semifinal appearance at Roland-Garros and extends his all-time men’s record for major semifinals. He now trails only Chris Evert (52) for the overall Grand Slam semifinal record. At 37, Djokovic is also the second-oldest man in the Open Era to reach the French Open semifinals, after Pancho Gonzales in 1968.

Their last encounter ended painfully for Djokovic, who had to withdraw from the Australian Open semifinal against Zverev due to injury. But this time, under the lights of Court Philippe-Chatrier, the 24-time Grand Slam champion staged a comeback after dropping the first set, winning in just over three hours.

“Beating one of the world’s best on such a big stage is exactly what I train for,” said Djokovic. “At this stage of my career, I continue to push myself for moments like these. It’s proof to myself and to others that I can still compete at the highest level.”

This win marked Djokovic’s 101st career victory at the French Open and sets up a highly anticipated semifinal clash with top seed Jannik Sinner — their first Grand Slam meeting since Sinner defeated Djokovic at the 2024 Australian Open en route to his maiden major title. Their head-to-head record is tied at 4-4, though Sinner has won the last three matches.

If Djokovic overcomes Sinner and second seed Carlos Alcaraz defeats Lorenzo Musetti in the other semifinal, Djokovic could face a historic opportunity: no man has ever beaten the ATP’s top three ranked players in a single Grand Slam to win the title.

Arriving in Paris fresh off his 100th ATP title in Geneva, Djokovic is now on a nine-match winning streak. He is aiming for his first Grand Slam crown since the 2023 US Open. Alcaraz and Sinner, meanwhile, have claimed all five Grand Slam titles since that win.

With inputs from IANS