PARIS (AP) — Novak Djokovic will set a record the moment he steps on court for his opening match at the French Open against Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in the night session on Sunday.
Two days after his 39th birthday, Djokovic will play a men’s record 82nd Grand Slam tournament — one more than Roger Federer and Feliciano Lopez.
For all his experience, though — he shares the record of 24 Grand Slam singles titles with Margaret Court — Djokovic comes to Roland Garros with hardly any match preparation.
Djokovic lost to Croatian qualifier Dino Prižmić at the Italian Open in his only match on clay this year — after two months out due to a right shoulder injury.
“I wanted to play more but my body was not allowing me,” Djokovic said, adding he “was far from ready to compete” in Rome. “But, still, I needed at least that one match just to have the score called by the chair umpire and have experience of the nerves before I eventually come to Roland Garros, which at that point I didn’t know if I was going to be able to play or not.
“Thankfully, the response of the body and the preparation has been positive in the last 10 days, so here I am, and we’ll see what happens.”
Djokovic will also tie French players Richard Gasquet and Antoine Gentian with a men’s record 22nd appearance at Roland Garros. He has reached at least the quarterfinals in 19 of the last 20 editions and raised the Coupe des Mousquetaires trophy in 2016, 2021 and 2023.
Despite his reduced schedule of late, it should be remembered that he reached this year’s Australian Open final where he lost to Carlos Alcaraz.
With Alcaraz, the two-time reigning French Open champion, sitting out Roland Garros and Wimbledon with an injured right wrist, Djokovic sees a chance for himself in the lower half of the draw. He would meet top-ranked Jannik Sinner, who is on a 29-match winning streak, only in the final.
“I feel like if I’m healthy and I’m able to maintain that level of freshness throughout the tournament,” the fourth-ranked Djokovic said, “then I feel like I have always a very good chance. I have proven that in Australia this year. … I always have that belief in me when I’m on the court.”
Along with 2015 champion Stan Wawrinka, who is playing his final French Open, Djokovic is the only former men’s singles champion competing in Paris.
The 80th-ranked Mpetshi Perricard is 6-foot-7 (2.01 meters) and known for his big serve. He’s also French, which could make for a divided crowd on Court Philippe-Chatrier.
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AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis
