Before Novak Djokovic left the court after his French Open semi-final defeat, he put his racquet bags down on the clay and said a heartfelt goodbye to the Paris crowd.

Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz composed himself after a slow start before charging into back-to-back French Open finals when eighth seed Lorenzo Musetti retired with a left thigh injury while trailing 4-6 7-6(3) 6-0 2-0 on Friday.

Novak Djokovic hit a barrage of drop shots to beat Alexander Zverev for a place in the French Open semi-finals on Wednesday, and the Serbian said his hand was forced by windy conditions that left him feeling like he had two opponents.

The French Open quarter-finals start on Tuesday with top seed Aryna Sabalenka facing Zheng Qinwen, who won gold when Roland Garros hosted the tennis tournament at last year’s Paris Olympics.

Three-times champion Novak Djokovic roared into the French Open quarter-finals by beating Briton Cameron Norrie 6-2 6-3 6-2 for his 100th match victory at Roland Garros to join Rafa Nadal in one of sport’s most exclusive fraternities.

Lorenzo Musetti’s impressive claycourt season rolled on in style on Sunday when the Italian craftsman downed the talented yet erratic Holger Rune 7-5 3-6 6-3 6-2 to reach the French Open quarter-finals for the first time.

Fourth round action continues at the French Open with top seeds Jannik Sinner and Coco Gauff in action while Novak Djokovic chases a milestone 100th win at Roland Garros.

The look on Coco Gauff’s face said it all as she walked out on court to begin her French Open title bid, only to discover she had forgotten one vital thing.

Jannik Sinner navigated mild turbulence for a winning return to Grand Slam tennis as the world number one launched his hunt for a maiden French Open trophy with a 6-4 6-3 7-5 first-round victory over Arthur Rinderknech.

World number one Aryna Sabalenka sounded an early warning siren to her French Open rivals when she dismantled Kamilla Rakhimova in the opening round, while Parisian fans gave Rafa Nadal a special salute as the claycourt major got underway on Sunday.

Britain’s Jack Draper is a title threat at the French Open but could have an even bigger chance of landing a Grand Slam title at Wimbledon, according to American great John McEnroe.

A battling Novak Djokovic made another bit of tennis history as he clinched his 100th ATP singles title with a comeback victory over Hubert Hurkacz in Geneva.