All five of the younger hopefuls, the 25 and unders who have already made it to the top 12 in the rankings and can count a Masters title or final in their resume, plus a win over at least one of the triumvirate in men’s tennis—Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer—were in action on middle Saturday. All five were attempting to reach the last 16 at Roland Garros.
One of their number, No4 seed Dominic Thiem, had made the final at the French Open last year. No6 seed Stefanos Tsitsipas reached a Major semi-final in Australia at the start of this season.
But how many of this bunch could join the group of oh-so-fit, healthy and still very successful 30-somethings in the last 16?
Tsitsipas had the first big test against the talented Serb Filip Krajinovic. It began well enough, with the charismatic young Greek taking a strong 7-5, 6-3, lead, but Friday evening closed in, the light faded, and the Serb marched to a 5-2 lead in the third set after Tsitsipas extended his leg in an awkward slide.
They would have to stop at an even number of games, and given that target, the Greek broke and took the third set to 5-5. So they resumed the next day, when that set would go to a tie-break. And Tsitsipas came out hot, took a 3-0 lead, but the tricky tennis of Krajinovic kept the Greek guessing with angles and drops, and the Serb levelled, then edged the lead, serving out the set, 7-6(5).
The Philippe Chatrier court was already packed for the resumption of this contest, and the fans got their reward, a thrilling set that lasted exactly an hour. Krajinovic looked ready to take advantage of some tight play from the Greek, who double faulted twice to hand the break at 3-4. Tsitsipas then failed to convert three break-back chances in the next game.
But the 20-year-old Greek showed he had as much mental resolve as athletic energy and skill: He broke for 5-5, and it would go to another tie-break. There, Krajinovic had the set on his racket at 6-5, but Tsitsipas rose to the occasion to sweep three points and the match, 7-6(6).
It made him the first Greek—man or woman—to reach the last 16 in Paris since 1936, and set a Monday showdown with a fellow single-hander.
His next opponent had also been forced to continue an intense, high-quality match the morning after the night before. Former champion, 34-year-old Stan Wawrinka, faced the contrasting one-handed backhand of Grigor Dimitrov.
The 28-year-old Bulgarian was returning from a difficult season and shoulder injury, and had been sorely tested already in Paris with two five-setters, and although this one would be done in three sets, the match lasted three and a quarter hours, three tie-breaks to Wawrinka, 7-6(5), 7-6(4), 7-6(8).
In the end, Dimitrov was unable to contain the blistering baseline firepower of the Swiss despite holding a 6-2 lead in the final tie-break: Stan the Man struck 57 winners in the match, and roared himself on to victory—a familiar sight for fans of perhaps the finest backhand in tennis.
The match was decided by a few points, and although Dimitrov would be hugely disappointed with the result, he was surely happy at the surge in his form and fitness, and in time for his favourite surface, grass, which beckons in a fortnight.
Wawrinka had reason to be even happier. After a tough two years and double knee surgery back in 2017, the Swiss notched up his 500th match-win. He told ATPTour.com:
“The level on our tour is extremely high and you suffer a lot to get to 500 match wins, trust me! So it means a lot to hit the milestone, but I’m not done yet. Let’s keep working hard and start the road to 600!”
While Wawrinka and Dimitrov were lighting up the much-loved No1 court, Zverev was working for his own place in the fourth round against another Serb, Dusan Lajovic. The young German had found some form after a difficult season by winning in Geneva last week, and was severely tested in an opening five-setter here against John Millman.
For his 100th clay-court match, he played Lajovic for just the second time: The first was a five-setter right here last year. This time, after an edgy start, three breaks in a row, Zverev trailed but upped the pace after holding off a blistering attack on serve from the Serb. The young German then broke to level, and broke again for the set, 6-4.
He raced through the second set, too, 6-2, but Lajovic, who reached the Monte-Carlo Masters final, found all his creativity to turn the match around, 1-6, 4-6, and take it to a fifth. However, Zverev regrouped to seal the win, 6-2, in just over three hours.
He next plays 32-year-old Fabio Fognini, who beat 31-year-old Roberto Bautista Agut, 7-6(5), 6-4, 4-6, 6-1.
Borna Coric, age 22, would have to hit the ground running against the power-playing German Jan-Lennard Struff.
The young Croat won two titles before he was 20, is a Masters finalist, and beat Federer to the Halle title last year. But he found himself in a gruelling five-setter after getting off to a fast start, 6-4. Struff hit back, 6-1, and they shared the next to two sets, as well, 6-4, 6-7(1). Then theyhembarked on a marathon fifth set, with neither able to take the advantage of a couple of breaks apiece. They edged past the four-hour mark, with the final set eventually lasting an hour and a half.
Both were serving well, and they had notched up 39 aces between them by 10-9, with Struff serving first and asserting the greater pressure.
Coric held strong in the face of strong pro-German crowds—until he faced match-point. He came to the net for what looked like a touch volley winner, only for Struff to race in for a backhand pass. The German fell to his knees: He was into the fourth round for the first time in his 23rd Major, 11-9.
As for Thiem, he did not disappoint against one of the most dangerous clay-court veterans on the tour, six-time clay titlist Pablo Cuevas. The Austrian has reached at least the semi-finals at the French Open for three consecutive years, and it showed in a two and a half hour win, 6-3, 4-6, 6-2, 7-5, that avenged a four-set loss to Cuevas at Roland Garros four years ago.
Thiem will next play home favourite, the 32-year-old Gael Monfils, but the young Austrian has been showing why he is tipped as one of the players who could join the other four former champions in the draw. After all, he beat Federer to win his first Masters title in Indian Wells, and beat Nadal on his way to the Barcelona title.
Another 30-year-old, No8 seed Juan Martin del Potro, a semi-finalist in Paris last year, made his way to the last 16 via a 6-4, 6-4, 6-0 win over Jordan Thompson, and will next face the last of those 25-and-unders who have built up heavy-weight resumes.
Karen Khachanov, No10 seed and winner of the Paris Masters last autumn, beat Martin Klizan, 6-1, 6-4, 6-3, after winning his 100th match earlier in the week.
So there is some strength in numbers among the challenging generation, yet a quick run-down of the last 16 shows that age and experience remain a potent combination. Nine of them are age over 30, while just five are 25 and under.
And the safe money will still be on the shoulders of the former champions, Nadal and Djokovic, who are scheduled to meet once again in the final.
See Part 1 of Will Youth Have Its Day, about the resilience of Djokovic, Nadal and Federer in the face of young challengers