By the end of only the third five-setter, Rafael Nadal had 112 career French Open matches under his belt, with the man known as the King of Clay showing just what that meant to him as the chants of “Ra-fa! Ra-fa!” filled the evening air.
With every sprint-slide-and-stretch to reach a seemingly unreachable shot off the yellow racket of his opponent, Felix Auger-Aliassime; with every right-to-a-corner winner; with every well-struck volley, Nadal would hop or throw an uppercut or scream “Vamos!” – and, often, all of the above.
Nadal got through his first serious test of this French Open by edging No. 9 seed Auger-Aliassime 3-6, 6-3, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 across nearly 4 1/2 hours of even, entertaining tennis in the fourth round Sunday at Court Philippe Chatrier.
And the reward? A tantalizing matchup against rival Novak Djokovic, which will come in the quarterfinals on Tuesday.
“Of course we know each other well. We have a lot of history together,” said Nadal, who hadn't dropped a set in the tournament's first week until ceding two against Auger-Aliassime, a big-serving 21-year-old from Canada. “Here we are in Roland Garros. It is my favorite place, without a doubt. I don't know what's going to happen, but the only thing I can guarantee is I am going to fight until the end.”
Nadal improved to 3-0 in five-set matches at the clay-court tournament he has dominated the way no one ever has dominated any Grand Slam event. Overall he is 109-3 here, and two of those defeats came against Djokovic, including in last year's semifinals.
Here is how significant their rivalry is: Tuesday's meeting will be their 59th, more than any other two men have faced each other in the sport's professional era. Djokovic leads 30-28, although Nadal has a 7-2 advantage at the French Open.
Looking at the larger picture, Nadal's record 13 championships at Roland Garros are part of his haul of 21 Grand Slam trophies, a record for men. The No. 1-ranked Djokovic, twice the title winner at the French Open, is just one behind Nadal in the total Slam count, tied with Roger Federer at 20.
“Obviously, a well-anticipated match, I think, when the draw came out, for a lot of people. I’m glad that I didn’t spend too much time on the court myself up to quarterfinals, knowing that playing him in Roland Garros is always a physical battle, along with everything else,” said Djokovic, who beat 15th-seeded Diego Schwartzman 6-1, 6-3, 6-3 earlier Sunday and has won all 12 sets he's played in the tournament.
“It’s a huge challenge,” Djokovic said about the prospect of facing Nadal, “and probably the biggest one that you can have here in Roland Garros. I’m ready for it.”
