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French Open: marathon man Novak Djokovic eyes 15th successive quarter-final at Roland Garros, faces 23rd-seed Argentine

  • Defending champion made the last 16 by beating Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti over 5 sets in the tournament’s latest-ever finish
  • His next opponent, Argentina’s Francisco Cerundolo, stunned world No 4 Alexander Zverev on clay earlier this season

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Novak Djokovic of Serbia finished his five-set match against Lorenzo Musetti of Italy at 3.07am on Sunday. Photo: TNS

Novak Djokovic will aim to reach his 15th successive French Open quarter-final on Monday after setting an unwanted Roland Garros record.

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The defending champion and 24-time grand slam title winner made the last 16 by beating Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti in a bruising five-set epic that ended at 3.07am on Sunday.

It was the latest finish ever at Roland Garros, and the 37-year-old said there were certain things that “could have been handled differently”.

“There is a certain beauty in winning the match at three in the morning if it is the last of the tournament, but this wasn’t the case,” he said.

On Monday, three-time French Open champion Djokovic faces Argentine 23rd seed Francisco Cerundolo for a place in the last eight.

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Victory would give him a record 370th grand slam match win.

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