Zverev ready for 'best in world' at French Open
The German third seed will be well rested for the latter stages of the tournament after his last-16 opponent Tallon Griekspoor retired with an abdominal injury while trailing 6-4, 3-0.
Zverev, who lost to Carlos Alcaraz in last year's Roland Garros final, will face either Djokovic or Britain's Cameron Norrie in the last eight as he continues his latest bid for a maiden Grand Slam title.
"For me, Carlos is the favourite. I have said that before. Then I would say the next three in line are Jannik, myself, and Novak, right? I still believe that," said Zverev, who is seeded to meet world number one Jannik Sinner in the semi-finals.
"I still believe on tennis and on experience Novak is up there with us, no question about that at all. So, yeah, I think from now on I have the toughest draw in the tournament.
"I'm looking forward to the battles ahead, and I'm looking forward to playing the best in the world."
He also reached the final at the Australian Open earlier this year before losing to Sinner.
Zverev has made at least the last four at the past four French Opens and is into his seventh quarter-final at Roland Garros in total.
The 28-year-old has won five of his 13 career matches with Djokovic, including in Melbourne in January when the Serb retired injured from their semi-final following the first set.
"We have great history in our rivalry, I would say, but I'm looking forward to the match, and it's always a privilege to be on court with him," added Zverev.
"But he has to win first today, also, right? I don't want to disrespect anybody, and anybody who is in the fourth round deserves to be there, so I have to respect Cam and we'll see how the match goes.
"Of course, playing Novak is always an honour."
Dutchman Griekspoor's serve was severely affected by his injury, although he managed to take a 3-0 lead in the first set before Zverev found his rhythm.
"Unfortunately this morning in the warm-up... I pulled my abdominal (muscle) which made me not serve fully and not able to compete the way I would like," said Griekspoor, who was playing in the fourth round of a major for the first time.
© 2025 AFP
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
France 24
4 hours ago
- France 24
Djokovic and Sinner chase French Open semis as underdogs look for upsets
French wildcard Boisson, ranked 361st in the world, steps up against Russian sixth seed Mirra Andreeva with a chance to write her own chapter in French tennis history. Handed a wildcard to enter the tournament, the 22-year-old kept home hopes alive by battling past US third seed Jessica Pegula to reach the last eight. "Obviously, it's a dream to begin with. I hope to go further," said the player from Dijon. "This is my favourite surface. As soon as the clay season starts, this is when I feel best and when I feel happiest." Second seed Coco Gauff will play seventh seed Madison Keys in an all-American quarter-final, looking to join world number one Aryna Sabalenka and three-time defending champion Iga Swiatek who are already through to the final four in the other half of the draw. Djokovic will compete in a record 19th French Open quarter-final against last year's runner-up Alexander Zverev. The German third seed will be well rested after his last-16 opponent Tallon Griekspoor retired on Monday with an abdominal injury while trailing 6-4, 3-0. Zverev, who lost to Carlos Alcaraz in last year's final, continues his latest bid for a maiden Grand Slam title after three runner-up finishes. "For me, Carlos is the favourite. Then I would say the next three in line are Jannik, myself, and Novak, right? I still believe that," said Zverev, who could meet world number one Sinner in the semi-finals. Zverev has made at least the last four at the past four French Opens and is into his seventh quarter-final. The 28-year-old has won five of his 13 career matches with Djokovic, including in Melbourne in January when the Serb retired injured from their semi-final. 'Pretty dominant' Djokovic, a three-time champion at Roland Garros, is just the second player to record 100 wins at the event after 14-time winner Rafael Nadal (112). "It's a very pretty number, but 101 victories sounds better," said 38-year-old Djokovic who has reached the quarter-finals at the clay-court major for a 16th consecutive year. "I will continue to search for another victory, it's clearly not finished for me here. I'm very honoured to make history in this sport, which has given me everything in my life." World number six Djokovic is chasing a record 25th major title and has a 100-16 record at Roland Garros. Italian Sinner takes on unseeded Kazakh Alexander Bublik, who hailed his emotional four-set win over fifth seed Jack Draper in the last 16 as the "best moment of his life". Sinner leads 62nd-ranked Bublik 3-1 in previous meetings. Both Sinner and Djokovic have not dropped a set so far. The Italian reached the semi-finals last year where he lost a five-set battle to Spaniard Alcaraz. Australian Open champion Keys plays Gauff against whom she has a 3-2 record winning their only meeting on clay in Madrid last year. "It feels great to be back in the quarters here, and really happy with how I played today and hopefully can keep going," said Gauff who has 15 wins on clay this year. Former US Open champion Gauff puts her success on the surface down to her unwavering belief that she can turn a match in her favour no matter the score. She is hoping to make it third time lucky at the French Open, after losing in the finals in Madrid and Rome last month. Gauff made her first Grand Slam final in Paris in 2022 at the age of just 18. "I remember meeting Coco for the first time, and in my head she was, like, nine years old," joked 30-year-old Keys, who won her maiden Grand Slam title in Melbourne in January. "And just kind of watching her play, I knew that she was going to be someone that was going to be pretty dominant pretty quickly." © 2025 AFP
France 24
7 hours ago
- France 24
'Rested' Pacquiao relishing boxing comeback at 46
The charismatic Filipino boxing icon stunned the sports world last month after announcing he would take on World Boxing Council (WBC) champion Barrios on July 19 in Las Vegas, four years after his last fight ended in a disappointing defeat. Pacquiao, who won 12 world titles in eight different weight classes during a glittering professional career that began in 1995, told reporters on Tuesday that the glamour of championship boxing had prompted his return. "I'm returning because I miss my boxing," Pacquiao said at a press conference in Los Angeles. "Especially these situations -- being interviewed, press conference, training camp, everything like that. "I missed that. But it has been good for me -- I've rested my body for four years. And now I come back." Pacquiao said that he had been left devastated following his decision to retire in the wake of his loss to Yordenis Ugas in 2021. "I always thought, even when I hung up my gloves, 'I can still fight, I can still feel my body, I can still work hard,'" Pacquiao said. "That moment when I announced hanging up my gloves four years ago -- I was so sad. I was crying, I cannot stop the tears coming out my eyes." Pacquiao, though, revealed that working out at his home in the Philippines persuaded him he still had the fitness and strength to fight. "I realized when I'm playing basketball, training at the gym my house -- I have complete sport facilities in my house -- that I still have that passion. I still have that speed and power," he said. 'Low-risk' comeback Some in boxing have expressed concerns about whether Pacquiao's comeback against Barrios, who is 16 years his junior, represents a risk to the Filipino's safety. Addressing those concerns, Pacquiao noted that his family and loved ones were firmly behind his comeback. "I'm thankful for them for their concern," Pacquiao told AFP. "But the people who really concern me, is my family. My family saw how I move, saw how I train, saw my my body condition. They support me because they can see the old Pacquiao style." Pacquiao, who has reunited with veteran trainer Freddie Roach for next month's fight, is able to challenge immediately for a title due to a WBC rule that allows former champions to request a title fight when coming out of retirement. WBC President Mauricio Sulaiman told AFP on Tuesday that Pacquiao had been cleared to return to the ring by the Nevada Athletic Commission after undergoing medical exams, describing the fighter's comeback as "low risk". "Manny Pacquiao is at no higher risk than any fighter going into the ring," Sulaiman said. "Manny has rested his body for four years. He's not a drinker. He's not a drug user. He's a family man that has taken care of himself. So of the different aspects of dangers, he's at the lowest risk." Pacquiao's opponent, Barrios, said he would set aside the Filipino's status as one of the most beloved fighters of his era. "There's nothing but good things to say about him outside the ring," Barrios said of Pacquiao. "He's a hard guy to dislike. But at the end of the day, you know it's kill or be killed. "And I know if at any point he has me hurt, you know he's going to get me out of there. So I just have to go in there and make sure that my hand is raised at the end of the fight." © 2025 AFP
France 24
9 hours ago
- France 24
Who said what: French Open day 10
"It was a big match and probably would make more sense to put us a little bit later just so more people could watch it. But at the same time, I'm happy to finish earlier and then I have a half day off and I can just enjoy the city and do all the things that I have to do. "I definitely have to say that, yeah, we deserve the equal treatment... There was a lot of, like, great battles, a lot of great matches, which would be cool to see as, like, night session, just more people in the stands watching these incredible battles. And just to show ourselves to more people." -- World number one Aryna Sabalenka weighs in on the debate about lunch-time crowds on Court Philippe Chatrier and scheduling more women's matches later in the day at Roland Garros. "I think everything started when I just came to her and asked to do a TikTok in that Finals in Riyadh. Since that, we were, like, 'Okay, maybe we can communicate, we can be good to each other, we can practice sometimes'." -- Sabalenka on becoming closer with rival and semi-final opponent Iga Swiatek. "The ultimate goal is to win a Grand Slam, to be at the top of WTA ranking, but you know, I try to take it step by step, try to take my time. It's important for me to just sometimes sit and realise how much I've done, how much work I've done. "You know, coming back from pregnancy, it's not an easy task already, so sometimes I just want to sit, to relax, to tap myself on the shoulder and say: 'Okay, you are in a good spot, you are doing well. There is not so many people who have done that before, and you are on a good path. So just continue working and continue doing your thing, and good things are coming your way'." -- Defeated quarter-finalist Elina Svitolina, 30, on her tennis ambitions since returning to the tour after becoming a mother. "It was, I could close my eyes and everything went in, my feeling today was amazing. Today was one of those matches where everything went in, I'm just pleased with everything." -- Five-time Grand Slam winner Carlos Alcaraz impressed even himself with his performance in the night session against a helpless Tommy Paul. "I think I never played in such a wind. In first set it was fine, but in second set it got pretty crazy. Like honestly, when I played against the wind, or she (Svitolina) did, we just had to, like, stop for a second because there was so much clay in the air that you couldn't keep your eyes open." -- Swiatek overcame gusty conditions in Paris to seal her quarter-final win with back-to-back aces. "Honestly it was really unlucky coincidence. Yeah, I was a little bit, honestly, scared, because I really didn't want to harm nobody, of course. So I immediately went to the line umpire, and I of course said, 'Sorry', I apologise to everyone. It was right to have a warning, but I think the umpire saw that there was no intention about that, and that's why probably just, you know, let me continue my game." -- Semi-finalist Lorenzo Musetti came close to seeing his last-eight meeting with Frances Tiafoe cut short after he kicked a tennis ball, which ended up hitting a line judge.
