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Novak Djokovic He said he was “feeling good” after overcoming neck and shoulder problems to defeat Pablo Carreno Busta on Wednesday and set up a French Open semi-final showdown with Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Djokovic defeated Spaniard Carreno Busta, 17th seed, 4-6, 6-2, 6-3, 6-4 to reach the quarterfinals of a major for the 38th time while chasing a second French Open title and the 18th Grand Slam title.
However, the world number one required treatment for his upper left arm after losing his first set of the tournament on a cold autumn afternoon in Paris.
“I definitely didn’t feel very good coming onto the court today, some things happened in the warm-up,” Djokovic said.
“I had some neck problems and some shoulder problems. I really don’t want to get too into it.
“I feel good, I’m still in the tournament so I don’t want to reveal too much. As the match progressed, I felt better, I didn’t feel as much pain.”
The Serbian is now two victories away from becoming the first man in half a century, and only the third in history, to win all four Slams twice.
His only loss in 37 games this year came to Carreño Busta following his disqualification from the US Open for an angry ball hit that struck a linesman square in the throat.
Djokovic looked vulnerable again against Carreño Busta, who twice had chances to break in the second set but was unable to capitalize, instead losing his own serve twice.
“For a set and a half he was the best player, dictating the play,” Djokovic said.
The Serbian unleashed a primordial roar after having defended himself from two break points in the first game of the third set and appeared to be in control at 3-0 until Carreño Busta returned to 3-all.
But the seeded player regained the lead with another break at 4-3 en route to taking the third set.
Djokovic became more and more encouraged as he missed a series of break points early in the fourth set, but finally delivered the decisive blow in the seventh game when Carreño Busta hit a wide right hand.
“It really was anyone’s game. He was so close. He had his chances. I had my chances. It was a very even match even though it was three sets to one,” Djokovic said.
Tsitsipas reached his second Grand Slam semi-final with a straight sets win over thirteenth seed Andrey Rublev, avenging last month’s loss to the Russian in the final in Hamburg.
The Greek fifth seed defeated Rublev 7-5, 6-2, 6-3 to match his breaking streak at the 2019 Australian Open.
“From a young age I hope to potentially succeed in these Grand Slams. I am happy to be able to be in a position that I am in today,” Tsitsipas said. “I’m chasing something spectacular.”
“Despite not getting off to a good start and being a meltdown, I remembered what a great fighter I am,” he added.
“It’s also about fighting and trying to find solutions in difficult times. I managed to put my brain to work.”
Tsitsipas, 22, has won 15 consecutive sets in the tournament after two sets less than Jaume Munar in the first round.
However, that streak seemed in jeopardy when Rublev, who also made his first quarter-final appearance at the French Open, served for the first set at 5-4.
A loose game by Rublev allowed Tsitsipas to rebound and scored four in a row to take the lead.
Tsitsipas, last year’s ATP Finals champion, dominated the second set to put Rublev on the brink, benefiting from a favorable net rope to break at 3-2 after scoring the opening after a 28-shot rally.
Only Djokovic has won more than Rublev’s three titles in 2020, but the world number 15 could not stop a supreme Tsitsipas who closed the victory in two hours.
Tsitsipas had 35 winners and made only 17 unforced errors. He is 2-3 against Djokovic before Friday’s game.
“I expect a really difficult match, a difficult challenge for both of us. This is what you expect in the semifinals of a Grand Slam,” said Djokovic.
“He has been playing the tennis of his life in the last 12 months.”
