Tennis – French Open

Djokovic is now threatening to break the record for most consecutive wins in a season held by Guillermo Vilas in 1977, at 46. Djokovic’s streak is even more impressive because of the opponents he faces are far tougher than any Vilas confronted. Djokovic has beat Federer three times this year, dropping only one set in the process. In the French Open, Djokovic seeded number 2 only after Nadal.

The French Open semifinals could see a clash between Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer after Djokovic progressed into the semis after his opponent Fabio Fognini retired with injury while Federer will face either Monfils or Ferrer. He defeated Thiemo de Bakker, Victor Hanescu, Juan Martin del Potro and Richard Gasquet dropping only one set to reach the quarterfinals. His winning streak is now up to 43 matches in a row and 41 in 2011. With a win in the semifinals, he will match John McEnroe’s record of 42 consecutive victories to begin a season, and will pass Nadal as world no. 1 following the French Open regardless of the result of the final.

Roger Federer of Switzerland set a record by reaching the French Open quarterfinals and Novak Djokovic of Serbia closed in on two of his own. Federer extended his quarterfinal streak at major tournaments to 28 with a 6-3, 6-2, 7-5 victory over Stanislas Wawrinka, his Olympic gold-medal doubles partner. The 16-time grand slam winner on Sunday has thrashed out his fellow countrymen and his Davis cup team, Wawrinka in straight sets in the pre-quarters of the 2011 French Open. He outplayed his fellow countryman with extreme angled ground strokes and sharp serves. He surpassed Jimmy Connors’ record of reaching 27 consecutive grand slam quarter-finals. Federer has not fallen before the quarter-finals at any major since Roland Garros 2004.

Five-time champion Rafael Nadal reached the French Open quarter-finals on Monday with a 7-5, 6-3, 6-3 win over Croatia’s Ivan Ljubicic and could face Robin Soderling next. It was another low-key display by the top-seeded Spaniard against the veteran Ljubicic before he took his Paris record to 42 wins and just one loss. Swedish fifth seed Soderling, who inflicted that shock defeat in the fourth round in 2009 before Nadal gained revenge in the 2010 final, tackles French 18th seed Gilles Simon later on Monday in the last 16.

Nadal, bidding for a sixth French Open title to take him level with Bjorn Borg’s record, has looked a shadow of his usual powerful self in Paris, shaken by the super-charged form of Novak Djokovic. The great Spaniard dropped 42 games in the first three rounds, the most he has ever surrendered in his French Open career.

Tags: French Open, Grand Slam, Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Serbia, Switzerland, Tennis