It’s no Djoke

PARIS, June 2

Defending champion Iga Swiatek led the way as fancied players at the French Open progressed to the quarterfinals in double quick time today after Novak Djokovic had sealed an epic victory in a match that ended in the early hours.

With Roland Garros still abuzz after that marathon in the claycourt Grand Slam’s latest ever finish at just after three 3am local time, top seed Swiatek produced masterclass to beat Anastasia Potapova 6-0 6-0

in 40 minutes.

American Coco Gauff was not as ruthless as her Polish rival but equally efficient as she powered past Elisabetta Cocciaretto 6-1 6-2 in an hour

Third seed Carlos Alcaraz thumped Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-3 6-3 6-1 to set up a rematch of his 2023 quarterfinal with Stefanos Tsitsipas, who beat Matteo Arnaldi 3-6 7-6(4) 6-2 6-2.

Alcaraz’s victory meant the entire day session for singles on Court Philippe Chatrier was completed in exactly four hours, 29 minutes less than Djokovic needed to defeat Italian Lorenzo Musetti overnight

The late finish came under criticism as Swiatek said that Grand Slams needed to rethink their scheduling. “It’s not easy to play and it’s not like we’re going to fall asleep one hour after the match,” she said.”Usually, it takes us four hours to even chill and you need to do recovery, media. It’s not like the work ends when the match point (is won).” — Reuters