You can never count him out. Not even when he’s two sets to love down, not when he’s championship points down, not ever. His opponents, great and inexperienced, have often learnt this the hard way over the past two decades. No matter how grim the situation, he can find a way. With Novak Djokovic, it simply isn’t over till it’s over.
On Monday, he seemed done for in the second set when he hurt his knee and began to move gingerly. A defeat seemed inevitable when he was down a break in the fourth after losing the second and third sets. The unheralded Argentine Francisco Cerundolo was within touching distance of the biggest win of his career. It seemed the defending champion at Roland Garros would suffer his earliest exit from the tournament in 15 years.
But that’s all that it was. Things only seemed to be hopeless. The match was still not over and that’s all he needed know. The world No.1, the holder of a record 24 men’s singles Grand Slam titles, won 11 of the last 15 games to win 6-1, 5-7, 3-6, 7-5, 6-3 and claim a Grand Slam quarter-finals spot for a record 59th time. He did it again. The power of his belief manifested itself again. He did it, at 37, despite having completed a five-setter in the third round about 40 hours earlier, at 3am no less.
The injury on Monday happened in the fourth game of the second set. Djokovic jerked his right knee and felt in considerable discomfort. He beat his thighs animatedly as he walked to his chair and decided it was better to take a medical timeout. From there, he kept calling the trainer for quick massages during changeovers through the second set. He looked in pain between points, but seemed to be moving fine during them.
Cerundolo wasn’t too efficient in killing points but did well to break at 5-5 before drawing level in the match. He then broke early in the third set too as his opponent started to look a lot more uncomfortable. Djokovic winced in pain repeatedly and moved with extreme caution.
After struggling to retrieve balls for most of the third set, the Serb tried to make one final push in the fourth and held his first two service games. But with his movement still compromised, Cerundolo got another break. Up 4-2, the finish line was in sight for the 27th-ranked Argentine who has wins against the likes of Jannik Sinner, Alexander Zverev and Casper Ruud.
However, that’s when the final twist began. Perhaps it was a result of the painkillers finally kicking in but Djokovic’s movement returned to its optimum level. Rather than limp, he strode with that steely determination in his eyes. His groundstrokes began to paint the baseline as they usually do when he’s in the zone. He was hungry, and all those watching knew what outcome was inevitable.
To Cerundolo’s credit, he hung in there and produced some inspired tennis in the fifth set despite squandering that golden opportunity in the fourth. He even broke back after falling behind early. But Djokovic was going to have none of it. He suffered a nasty fall and bled from his knee, he performed a split at the net to land the most outrageous volley, he simply didn’t let anything get between him and his goal. Four hours and 29 minutes later, he reigned supreme on Court Philippe-Chatrier once again.
It was the 370th Grand Slam singles win in Djokovic’s storied career, which took him past Roger Federer at the top of the all-time list. Even as he continues to reach greater heights, though, questions have been raised about whether he can return to his dominant best. He’s yet to win a title this year and has been pushed to his limits in Paris. But the chase for a record-extending 25th Major is still on. And you better believe, it won’t be over till it’s over.