Sweet 16 for Djokovic, Federer as Barty limps out
Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer both reached the French Open third round for the 16th time on Thursday as the battle for the women’s title was thrown wide open after world number one Ashleigh Barty limped out. Top seed Djokovic continued his bid for a second Roland Garros and 19th Grand Slam title with a […]
Tennis legend, Roger Federer (L) and Novak Djokovic embrace each other after a match.
Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer both reached the French Open third round for the 16th time on Thursday as the battle for the women’s title was thrown wide open after world number one Ashleigh Barty limped out.
Top seed Djokovic continued his bid for a second Roland Garros and 19th Grand Slam title with a straight-sets win over Uruguay’s Pablo Cuevas.
Federer stayed on course for a quarter-final showdown with Djokovic but only after becoming entangled in a rare running dispute with the chair umpire.
The 34-year-old, who is looking to become the first man in more than 50 years to claim all four Slams multiple times, won 6-3, 6-2, 6-4.
Women’s top seed Barty, already suffering from a left hip injury, retired injured midway through the second set of her second-round match against Poland’s 45th-ranked Magda Linette.
The Australian, who won the title on her last visit to Roland Garros in 2019, left the court for medical treatment after losing the first set 6-1.
She then called it quits at 2-2 in the second set on Court Philippe Chatrier.
“It’s heartbreaking,” Barty said. “It’s a miracle I got past the first round.”