Novak Djokovic executed another remarkable escape, defeating Argentine 23rd seed Francisco Cerundolo in a five-set thriller to secure a place in his 15th consecutive French Open quarter-final on Monday.
The 37-year-old appeared hindered by injury before securing a 6-1 5-7 3-6 7-5 6-3 victory against Argentine 23rd seed Cerundolo.
For the second time in three days, the 24-time major champion rallied from a two-sets-to-one deficit.
The fourth-round match against Cerundolo commenced at approximately 4pm local time on Monday, a little over 36 hours after his previous contest against Lorenzo Musetti concluded at 3:07am on Sunday morning.
However, Djokovic demonstrated remarkable mental and physical resilience, securing another gruelling victory in a match that lasted four hours and 39 minutes.
The top seed broke into a beaming smile upon sealing his victory, pointing to his chest and then to the court in celebration.
"Three or four times I was points away from losing this match and thank you to my opponent," said Djokovic.
"He deserves so much applause that's for sure. I'm not sure how I won this match."
It marked Djokovic's 370th victory in a Grand Slam tournament, placing him ahead of his great rival Roger Federer.
Djokovic will face the winner of Norwegian seventh seed Casper Ruud, whom the Serb defeated in last year’s final, and American 12th seed Taylor Fritz.
