Novak Djokovic has reached the fourth round of the French Open for a record 12th consecutive year.
The No. 1-seeded Djokovic has not been pushed yet in any match — or any set, really — in Week 1 at Roland Garros. His latest victory was by a 6-1, 6-4, 6-1 score against 93rd-ranked Ricardas Berankis.
Djokovic’s streak of appearances in the round of 16 in Paris is now one longer than the previous professional era mark for men of 11. That was shared by Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer, who both got that far every year from 2005 to ’15.
Djokovic is seeking a second French Open championship and 19th Grand Slam title overall. Nadal and Federer share that record with 20.
Against Berankis, Djokovic never faced a break point and compiled 30 winners to just 18 unforced errors.
“Maybe for those watching it looked simple, but it wasn’t,” he told the crowd in French. “The conditions were different. How do you say in French … the bounce was lower. I think I coped well.”
Djokovic has dropped a total of 23 games across three matches so far.
Djokovic next faces 19-year-old Lorenzo Musetti, who rallied to win an all-Italian matchup against Marco Cecchinato 3-6, 6-4, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3. Musetti is playing in his first Grand Slam tournament.
Jan-Lennard Struff, a 31-year-old German, matched his best Grand Slam effort by advancing to the fourth round when he beat 18-year-old qualifier Carlos Alcaraz 6-4, 7-6 (3), 6-2. No. 10 Diego Schwartzman eliminated Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-4, 6-2, 6-1.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report