PARIS, June 3: Despite a poor start against Argentinian Diego Schwartzman, Novak Djokovic cruised into the round of 16 at the French Open.
Djokovic had 55 unforced errors in the match and went down two sets to one before storming back into the game and won 5-7, 6-3, 3-6, 6-1, 6-1. The Serbian also picked up a conduct warning from umpire Carlos Ramos.
Djokovic expressed frustration throughout the entire match. After he struggled in the first set, picking up 21 errors and losing a 4-1 lead, he seemed to settle down and find a groove in the second, easily winning 6-3.
However, in the third set, Schwartzman played alongside Djokovic on every stroke, ultimately claiming a two to one set lead.
Djokovic dropped the hammer in the next two sets, visibly agitated. He continued to chirp with Ramos, who issued him a second warning for unsportsmanlike play to complement a warning for slow play earlier in the same game. Djokovic took 12 of the next 14 games to bury the match.
Djokovic�s opponent for the Round of 16 has not yet been set, but it will be interesting to see if they see this performance as a crack in the armor.
On the women�s side, with her pregnant sister Serena in attendance, Venus Williams handily defeated Elise Mertens 6-3, 6-1 to advance to the fourth round of the women�s bracket. Another win would net Williams a draw in the quarterfinals. This would mark her first appearance in the quarterfinals at The Open since 2006.
Simona Halep survived a third-round scare against young pretender Daria Kasatkina in a Roland Garros rollercoaster on Saturday, winning 6-0, 7-5 after initially threatening to brush past the 20-year-old Russian with ease.
Carla Suarez made it to the fourth round after a straight sets win over Ukrainian Elena Vesnina on Saturday.
The No. 21 seeded Spaniard, who reached the fourth round at the French Open for the fourth time in her career, defeated 14th seed Vesnina 6-4, 6-4 in an hour and 43 minutes. � Agencies
