French Open: Defending champion Nadal enters quarterfinals
Jun 07, 2021
Paris [France], June 7 : Defending champion Rafael Nadal on Monday progressed to the quarterfinals of the ongoing French Open after winning his fourth-round match.
Nadal defeated Italy's Jannik Sinner 7-5, 6-3, 6-0 here at Court Philippe-Chatrier in the fourth-round match. The entire match lasted for 2 hours and 18 minutes.
The match between Nadal and Sinner went back and forth in the first set, but in the end, the 35-year-old Nadal managed to hold his own and he won the first set 7-5.
Sinner displayed some good winners in the second set, but Nadal showed his class to win the set 6-3 and he was just one more set away from progressing to the quarterfinals of the ongoing Grand Slam.
Going for the kill, Nadal displayed his vintage gameplay in the third set and Sinner had no answers, and in the end, the Spaniard ended up wrapping the match in straight sets. Nadal did not even drop a single game in the third set of the match.
Earlier on Monday, world number one Novak Djokovic stormed into the quarterfinals of the ongoing French Open. Lorenzo Musetti opted out of the match in the fifth set due to an injury. The 34-year-old Djokovic defeated Italy's Musetti 6-7, 6-7, 6-1, 6-0, 4-0 ret in the fourth-round match at Court Philippe-Chatrier. With this win, the Serbian has qualified for the quarterfinals of the French Open for the 15th time in his career.
After being two sets down, Djokovic staged a comeback in the third set and he displayed his A-game to throw Musetti off the track and as a result, the match progressed to the fourth set. The world number one displayed why he is labelled as a modern-day great and he did not drop even a single game in the fourth set, winning it 6-0, and as a result, the match went into the fifth and final set.
Djokovic carried on with his momentum and he was leading the fifth set 4-0, and it was then, that Musetti opted out of the match due to an injury.
Earlier on Sunday, Roger Federer withdrew himself from the ongoing French Open, tournament organisers confirmed. Speaking about his decision, Federer had said: "After discussions with my team, I have decided I will need to pull out of the Roland Garros today. After two knee surgeries and over a year of rehabilitation it is important that I listen to my body and make sure I do not push myself too quickly on my road to recovery."
