Updates: Djokovic Levels Roland Garros QF Against Carreno Busta

World No. 1 Novak Djokovic only lost 25 games en route to the Roland Garros quarter-finals, a personal best. But he is in a battle on Wednesday evening in the last eight, levelling his match against 17th seed Pablo Carreno Busta at 4-6, 6-2.

Djokovic walked on court with tape on his neck. On several changeovers, the top seed massaged or attempted to make his left arm more comfortable by banging it with his right hand. The 2016 champion uncharacteristically made 16 unforced errors and overused his drop shot in the first set before taking a medical timeout to get treatment on that arm.

Carreno Busta took full advantage early on, playing solid tennis and placing balls deep in the court to force Djokovic to beat him, which he wasn't able to do in the first set. The 17-time major champion landed only 40 per cent of his first serves in the opening set on Court Philippe-Chatrier, indicating issues with his service toss. Early in the second set, he gingerly hit an overhead.

But Djokovic quickly regained his form. The 33-year-old made 70 per cent of his first deliveries in the second set and significantly reduced his error count. The top seed only made seven unforced errors in the second and began playing with more margin, showing a willingness to hang in longer rallies with the 17th seed.

Djokovic has won 15 of his past 16 major matches against Top 20 opposition, with his only loss coming in last year's Roland Garros semi-finals against Dominic Thiem. He is 35-1 on the season.

Carreno Busta is trying to reach his first Roland Garros semi-final. The Spaniard is a two-time US Open semi-finalist, advancing to the last four in New York last month.

from Tennis - ATP World Tour https://ift.tt/2Gys9O0