(REUTERS) – NOVAK Djokovic felt “more nervous than usual” as he faced his first serious test at the French Open but continued his amazing unbeaten run by knocking out Juan Martin Del Potro to reach the fourth round yesterday. World number two Djokovic, who has a 40-0 record this year including his triumph at the Australian Open, triumphed 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 against the 2009 US Open champion in a match played over two days.
The tie was interrupted due to bad light on Friday just as Del Potro had levelled at 6-3, 3-6 but the stoppage robbed the Argentine of his momentum and gave the red-hot Serb, looking for his first Roland Garros title, time to regroup.
“I went into the match a bit more nervous than usual,” said Djokovic, who is bidding to break John McEnroe’s record of 42 straight wins since the start of a year.
He was only facing such a quality player at this stage because Del Potro has tumbled down the rankings after injury problems.
“We both made a lot of unforced errors at the start and then had some great, great periods of the match when we both played well,” added Djokovic. I was aware if I lost the serve it was going to be very difficult to get it back.”
When they resumed yesterday, Del Potro set up two break points in the fifth game of the third set but could not convert and in the following game, Djokovic broke to love as he put the Argentine on the ropes.
Djokovic, who is also on a 42-match winning streak since last December, ended the contest with an exquisite drop shot to set up a meeting with local favourite and 13th seed Richard Gasquet for a place in the quarter-finals.
Del Potro only had a mini-moan about losing his impetus from Friday.
“It’s my second time suspending matches to the next day. It’s not usual but can happen sometimes, and it’s the same conditions for both players,” the 25th seed said. Today he’s done much better than I and he took his opportunities and made the match very difficult.”
Five-times champion Rafael Nadal was his old merciless self as he silenced Croatian qualifier Antonio Veic 6-1, 6-3, 6-0.
The world number one, rattled by recent defeats to Novak Djokovic and laboured wins in the opening two rounds of this year’s claycourt slam, allowed only seven points to his opponent in the opening set, despite struggling on his first serve.
He ran into a spot of bother in the second set, conceding a couple of breaks, but a series of bludgeoning forehands floored world number 227 Veic, who beat twice French Open semi-finalist Nikolay Davydenko in the previous round.
“I had not forgotten to play tennis for a week, but I played better today,” said the Spaniard, who now boasts a 41-1 record at Roland Garros. I try and find solutions day after day when I practise, and then I try and implement that during the matches.
“But, as I said, it’s not just a problem of tennis practice or technique,” added Nadal, who will now meet Ivan Ljubicic, after the Croat beat Spanish 16th seed Fernando Verdasco 6-3, 7-6 (6) 6-4. I also had problems with my mental concentration. I made a great step forward. I have more confidence, and that’s a major step forward for me.”
Defeats in the Madrid and Rome finals against world number two Djokovic had dented the claycourt machine’s self-confidence on his preferred surface.
Uninspired performances in the first and second rounds against John Isner and Pablo Andujar appeared to rattle the nine-time grand slam champion’s nerves.
“I played a solid match almost all the time – except early in the second set,” said Nadal, who cracked a smile after handing Veic a spanking on Philippe Chatrier. I had a better control of the ball, I was more inside (the court), I returned much better, longer and then I had the chance to go inside with my forehand and get control of the point.”
Robin Soderling showed he was once again a force to be reckoned with at the French Open when he ruthlessly dismissed Argentine Leonardo Mayer 6-1, 6-4, 6-3.
The fifth-seeded Swede, a Roland Garros runner-up for the last two years, had his ring finger taped during the second set but it did not seem to bother him.
Soderling again relied on his heavy forehand to overpower Mayer, who bowed out on yet another service winner. Next up for Soderling will be local favourite and 18th seed Gilles Simon, who beat 10th seed Mardy Fish, the last American in the draw, 6-3, 6-4, 6-2.